Iron Within
by DrakeTheTraveller
Summary: Long ago an ancient empire vanished from the face of the galaxy, leaving not but dusty relics of near unimaginable wonder in their wake. Now more than 50,000 years later their inheritors scramble to find the remnants left behind, yet they know little about those who came before. Fox and the crew of the SSV Great Fox are sent to retrieve one such relic, and unearth something new..
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Just an idea I thought I'd jot down. Unlike Legacy and First Contact, I don't have any current plans to finish this. At the moment, this is more of my idea for a filler in-between updates for the stories I do plan to finish, but are just taking awhile to puzzle out. That being said, feedback is always welcomed and if this does receive enough attention I might make a concentrated effort to complete it.**

Murphy's Law

Every time Fox looked back on the day that would so drastically and pugnaciously transform his life, he felt amusement. Sure, it was more a satirical form of hilarity, then say, a knock knock joke, but it still forced a wry chuckle out of him every now and then. People in similar situations always told him how different their day had felt before it took such an unexpected turn, that they had some inherent precognition, a gut feeling one could call it, that warned them fecal matter was inevitably screaming on a collision course to the nearest rotor operated cooling device.

Fox supposed that was where his diverged abruptly from the norm. For him, it was just like any other morning aboard their newly christened stealth cruiser. He woke up at 5:00 AM sharp, as he always did, showered, as he always did, trimmed his fur, as he always did, and sucked down the same, plain, tasteless cuisine that the Mess Sergeant swore up and down was not soylent green yet he still held his suspicions of.

Then, upon completion of the usual morning ritual, he set forth to strike out the next task on his a.m. to-do-list list, pestering the ship's pilot. Admittedly, it was nothing more than a guilty pleasure that didn't really serve any purpose, but he just found it so damn hard to quit. After all, the poor bird couldn't really go anywhere.

Stepping out of the elevator that had carried him up from the crew deck to the CIC, Fox gave one last, brief glance at his hardsuit, ensuring that it was up to snuff and perfectly presentable as fitting a soldier of his station. He had already checked a hundred times from the moment he exited his sleep pod till now, but it couldn't hurt to be extra careful, especially with a council specter on board.

Fox had never liked specters, wandering the galaxy with the ability to decide who lives and who dies, unmonitored and unhindered by citadel law, it was no wonder he didn't really trust them. The vulpine respected their position, certainly, but that didn't mean he had to like them.

 _Sneaky bastards, the lot of them._

He had yet to hear a story involving a specter, or at least one of the rare times a report was unclassified, where the end tally body count was below double digits.

Fox looked up from his armor and scanned the CIC, searching for any sign of the council's secret agent, eventually recognizing the high collared armor that was unique to turian design. A small frown ceased the vulpine's muzzle upon seeing the specter standing inside the cockpit.

However, before he made his way over, Fox turned to speak with Pressley, who had zeroed in on him the moment he exited the elevator. The wolfhound was a tad ill-tempered and somewhat xenophobic, but that was all but expected given his family background. Most career navy dogs with family ties dating back to The First Contact War, inherited some measure of alien distrust.

Discard that xenophobia, and he was actually an alright guy, if a little neurotic at times.

"Morning, Pressley."

"Good morning, Commander." The canine stiffened, throwing up a terse salute as he knocked his boots together.

If the dog tried any harder he'd probably burst a blood vessel.

Fox withheld the eye roll he felt brewing and instead returned the salute, albeit offhandedly. Pressley was career navy, through and through, and the vulpine was certain blue blood ran through his veins.

Leaving Pressley to his work, he continued towards the cockpit. The Great Fox was on approach with the relay, and he didn't want to miss watching the jump. No matter how many times he saw it, it would always be as breathtaking and awe inspiring as the first. Nothing quite beat it, like staring down the barrel of a cannon as it fired… just pure awesome in its rawest form.

Eager as he was to see it, and keep an eye on the specter, the vulpine slowed down to take in the sights of the bridge as he often found himself doing, emerald irises roving the vast array of duty consoles and haptic interfaces as he slipped through the crew's hectic rhythm, each individual moving in orchestrated concert, like blood cells in the veins of a beating heart.

He smiled at the sight.

This was why he joined the navy, not just because of his parents, but the feeling off connectivity he felt as part of a well-oiled and fine-tuned machine. They were Lylat's best and brightest, and together they would keep their people safe.

Musing aside, he still arrived at the front of the bridge in time to watch as the cruiser swerved in on its final approach, lining up with the ancient forerunner station like a minnow saddling up to a whale. He only allowed a brief look in the specter's direction to acknowledge the turian before returning his full attention to the swirling eddies of sapphire brilliance that engulfed their relatively miniscule vessel and swept up the length of the colossal relic of a bygone age.

Then without warning, the ship leapt forward as the glowing blue luminesce reached a crescendo, propelling them forwards at a near incalculable velocity. And then… just like that, they were in the Exodus star cluster.

 _I'll never get used to that._

Near instantaneous space travel, one thing that he could say about it… it's damn convenient.

The show concluded, Fox shifted his attention to the pilot, watching silently as he performed the post-flight inspection, feathered digits roaming the holographic keyboard with practiced ease.

"Thrusters… check."

" Navigation… check."

"Internal emission sink, engaged."

"All systems online, drift… just under 1500k."

Fox was almost surprised when the specter decided to speak.

"1500 is good. Your captain will be pleased." With those parting words, the turian walked away, having seen what he needed it seemed.

Not seconds after he left, the pilot grumbled.

"I hate that guy."

At that, the avian's copilot, a grey furred dog with a short muzzle, turned to eye him oddly. "Nihlus gave you a compliment… so you hate him?"

The bird scoffed. "Remembering to zip up your jumpsuit after going to the bathroom, that's good. I just jumped us halfway across the galaxy and hit a target the size of a pinhead, so that's incredible. Sides, specters are trouble. I don't like having him onboard. Call me paranoid."

"You're paranoid. The council funded this project, the have a right to send someone to keep an eye on their investment."

"Yeah, that's the official story, only an idiot believes the official story."

A smirk still lingering on his face as he watched the show, Fox finally decided to offer his own input on the situation as he leaned against an empty duty station.

"They don't send specters on shakedown runs." While not nearly as much a conspiracy theorist as his feathered friend, he did tend to agree with his statement.

"So there's more going on than the Captain's letting on." The bird concluded.

Before they could delve deeper into why the council would bother sending one of their best agents along for the ride, they were interrupted as the radio flickered into life.

" **Joker, status report."**

Fox would know that voice anywhere, It was Captain Hare, a good friend of his family and the de facto boss of the Great Fox.

"Just cleared the relay Captain, stealth systems engaged and everything looks solid."

" **Good, find a comms buoy and link us into the network. I want mission reports relayed back to Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime."**

"Aye, Aye Captain. Better brace yourself. I think Nihlus is heading your way."

There was a brief pause, so quick Fox hardly picked up on it.

" **He's already here, Lieutenant."**

The canine smirked as he watched the bird wince and shake his head.

" **Tell Commander Mccloud to meet me in the comm room for a debriefing."**

"You… get that commander?" The bird slowly turned to look over his shoulder.

"What… the part where you embarrassed the Captain? Yeah, I got that part." Fox answered with a smug grin, his eyes alight with amusement.

Joker rolled his own. "Don't blame me. The Captain's always in a bad mood."

"Only when he's talking to you, Joker." The smiling canine co-pilot interjected.

With a chuckle, Fox left the two to their own devices and hurried down to the comms room. If the Captain was already upset, the last thing he wanted to do was be late.

He arrived in record time, stepping inside only a minute after he received the message. Expecting to see the Captain, he was surprised to find Nihlus the only one there. He watched the turian warily as the bird-like alien slowly strode towards him, each step measured and collected as he studied the vulpine with predatory eyes.

Fox was not an expert on interpreting turian facial expressions, but he was good at reading eyes, no matter the species. Nihlus was up to something, and he didn't like that one bit.

"Commander, I was hoping you'd get here first, it'll give us a chance to talk."

"The Captain said he would meet me here." Fox answered, hoping to buy time till he arrived.

"He's on his way." The turian assured him.

The vulpine watched hesitantly as the alien slowly circled around him. He felt as if he was being judged… evaluated. But he couldn't tell what for, and that made the vulpine very uneasy.

"I'm interested in this world were going to, Eden Prime. I've heard it's quite beautiful."

"I've never been there."

"But you know of it." The turian countered swiftly, pausing in his encirclement to stare at the vulpine meaningfully. "It's become something of a symbol to your people, hasn't it? Proof that Lylat can not only establish colonies across the galaxy, but also protect them." The specter turned away from him. "But how safe is it really?"

"Do you know something?' Fox demanded, taking a purposeful step forward. He didn't favor the turians tone. It sounded a little too threatening for his liking.

"Your people are still newcomers, Mccloud." The turian specter answered vaguely as he turned around to face him, leaving the tod's question unanswered. "The galaxy can be a dangerous place. Is the Alliance truly ready for this?"

Fox was going to ask exactly just what _this_ was, when he heard the comms room doors' open, and watched with a barely concealed sigh of relief as the Captain arrived, walking down the short path to the center of the room.

Captain Hare was a close friend of his father's. Not only that, but a personal one as well. Though in his early forties, the rabbit had yet to lose his vigor and was renowned across the fleet for his service record. Whatever this double entendre fueled interrogation was, Fox felt more at ease with his presence.

"I think it's time we told the Commander what's really going on." The rabbit decided with a meaningful glance in the vulpine's direction.

Not entirely certain where this conversation was going, Fox elected to remain quite for the moment and pay attention.

"This mission is far more than a simple shakedown run." The specter informed him, though Fox had already suspected this for a long time.

"I figured there was something you weren't telling us." He turned to the Captain.

"We're making a covert pickup on Eden Prime. That's why we needed the stealth systems operational."

"There must be a reason you didn't tell me about this, Sir." While there were military regulations, he knew that Peppy was not fond of keeping secrets from his crew.

"This comes down from the top, Commander, information on a strictly need-to-know basis." Hare moved away from Fox, clasping his paws firmly behind his back. "A research team on Eden Prime unearthed some kind of artifact during excavation." The Captain's path had him stop right beside Nihlus.

"It was forerunner."

This was a surprise to Fox. "I thought the forerunners vanished 50,000 years ago?" Everyone knew about them, an ancient, highly advanced alien race, that had once existed long ago.

This time it was Nihlus who spoke up, a resonant severity in his voice. "Their legacy still remains, the mass relays, the citadel, our ship drives, it's all based on forerunner technology."

"This is big, Fox." Peppy's expression was deathly serious, and the fact the Captain used his first name made it seem all that more grave. "The last time Lylat made a discovery like this, it jumped our technology forward 200 years. But Eden Prime doesn't have the facilities to handle something like this. We need to bring the artifact back to the citadel for proper study."

"Obviously this goes beyond mere Lylatian interest, Commander." Nihlus cut in. "This discovery could affect every species in council space."

"Are we expecting trouble?" Fox didn't know why, but he had a bad feeling about this. From experience he knew that big things tended to go paw-in-paw with big problems.

"I'm always expecting trouble." Nihlus stepped forward, the vulpine watching carefully as he approached.

"There's more Fox, Nihlus isn't just here for the artifact. He's also here to evaluate you."

 _Evaluate?_

Fox turned to regard the rabbit, a sickly sense of unease growing within him. "What's going on, Captain?"

Peppy stepped forward. "The Alliance has been pushing for this a long time. Lylat wants a larger role in shaping interstellar policy. We want more say with the Citadel Council. The specters represent the council's power and authority. If they accept a Lylatian into their ranks, it shows how far the Alliance has come."

 _Oh, I have a bad feeling about this._

"You held off an enemy assault during the blitz single handed."

Fox frowned as Nihlus dredged up a memory that was not one he liked to reminisce on, and the vulpine forced it down before his brain could unhelpfully bring it all back in vivid detail.

Nihlus continued on uninterrupted.

"You showed not only courage but incredible skill. That's why I put your name forward as candidate for the specters."

This was confusion enough for Fox to temporarily dismiss his unwanted memories. "Why would a turian want a lylatian in the specters?"

"Not all turians resent lylatians. Some of us see the potential of your people. We see what you have to offer to the rest of the galaxy, and to the specters. We are an elite group. It's rare to find an individual with the skills we seek. I don't care that you're lylatian Mccloud, only that you can do the job."

If this were not so important, Fox already knew what his answer would be. But this was big, bigger than himself and his personal feelings. This would be the opening Lylat needed to really be a part of the interstellar community, to be known as a serious player in the galactic game. This was so much more than merely joining the specters, and with that, how else could he answer then, "What do I need to do?"

Satisfied with his response, the turian nodded. "I need to see your skills for myself, Commander. Eden Prime will be the first of several missions together."

'You'll be in charge of the ground team." Peppy began to fill him in on the specifics. "Secure the artifact and get it on the ship ASAP. Nihlus will accompany you to observe the mission."

"Why is this artifact so important?" Fox had a general sense of its significance, but this still seemed like overkill for such a simple operation.

"All advanced galactic civilization is based on forerunner technology, even yours." Nihlus replied.

"If we hadn't discovered those forerunner ruins back on Titania, we'd still be stuck on Corneria. That was just a small data cache. Who knows what we could learn from this artifact. What if it's a weapons archive? We can't let it fall into the wrong paws."

"Like who?" Last Fox checked, there weren't that many hostile factions.

"The Attican Traverse isn't the most stable sector of citadel space. There are plenty raider and criminal groups active in the region. They might think a forerunner artifact is worth the risk of attacking an Alliance ship. Plus, Eden Prime is right on the border of the Terminus Systems."

"The Attican Traverse is under the citadel's protection. If the Terminus attacks, it's an act of war." Fox knew that though the citadel was not an aggressive government, they would defend themselves. And the citadel fleet was the most powerful navy in the known galaxy. It would be fool hardy for the terminus to instigate a conflict with them.

Nihlus was quick to dissuade him of that notion.

"Technically, yes. But some species in the terminus might be willing to start a war over this."

"The last thing the council wants is to get dragged into a major conflict with the Terminus Systems. We have to keep this low key."

Fox was curious. If a war could be initiated, simply because of the uncovering of a forerunner artifact, how important could this all be?

He turned to Peppy. Perhaps the hare would know more. "What do you know about the forerunners?"

"Just what they taught us in school. They were a technologically advanced species that ruled the galaxy 50,000 years ago. Then they vanished. Nobody knows how or why, but I've heard plenty of theories. But everyone agrees. Galactic civilization wouldn't exist without them."

"Their citadel is the very heart of galactic society, and without their mass relays, interstellar travel would be impossible. We all owe the forerunners a great debt."

Basically, as Fox understood what Nihlus and Peppy were telling him, they needed forerunner tech, and it would not be good if the badies got their mitts on it instead. Alright, that was simple enough. Fundamentally, this was the same song and dance he was used to. Get the object before the bad guys did. That's all he needed to know.

"Just give the word, Captain." If there was a job, he'd see it done.

Peppy nodded. "We should be nearing Eden Pr-"

" **Captain, we have a problem."** The familiar voice of Joker was a surprise as it suddenly filled the comm room.

 _Ah, Murphy's Law… just in time._ Fox withheld what he knew would be a discourteous chuckle.

"What's wrong, Joker?" Peppy prompted.

" **Transmission from Eden Prime, Sir, You'd better see this."**

"Bring it up on screen."

The three occupants off the comms room turned in unison as the holo-screen flared into life.

The first thing Fox noticed was a sound he was hard pressed to forget, the reverberant chatter of an M7 lancer, the standard issue marine assault rifle of the CDF, and in that moment… he knew everything they had just discussed was about to spin on its head.

The transmission was obviously from a soldier's helmet cam, Fox had seen more than enough helmet footage to be able to tell. From the looks of it, the owner of the helmet cam and their squad was embroiled in a heated firefight. The first thing he saw was a feline in a Phoenix Arms hardsuit, easily recognizable by the garish bleached white color and pink highlights, though the ferocious grimace on the feline's muzzle and the dangerous setting sharply clashed against the color palette.

The cat rushed towards the camera and called out a warning, shoving the other soldier to the dirt before layering a heavy barrage towards what must have been the enemy's position. Moments after the camera became blurry as the firefight intensified. Fox strained his ears, hoping he could identify what kind of weapon the enemy was using, but it was unlike unlike any weapon he had ever heard fired, a deep thrum that almost sounded electronic. Once the video eventually cleared an alliance marine kneeled down and looked into the recording device.

" **We're under attack, taking heavy casualties. I repeat, heavy casualties. We can't…."** An explosion muffled his next few words. **"Evac… They came out of nowhere, we need-"** The soldier was cut off as a round took him in the back, dropping the unfortunate male to the dirt and eliciting a sharp grimace from Fox as he watched on, helpless to do anything.

Yet his angered frown subsided as he stared in mute silence as the camera panned upwards to a strange sight. It was hard to describe what he saw. It had to be a ship. That was the only way what he saw could be possible, but it was not of any class or design that he had ever seen before, looking like some leviathan that had risen from the depths of some alien world. Just the sight of it filled him with an unwilling fear, as if there was a darkness clinging to his soul.

Before he could wonder on the strange sensation, there was a crescendo of violence as the transmission suddenly cut out. Bottom of Form

Joker's voice returned soon after.

" **Everything just cuts off after that, no comms traffic at all. It just goes dead, there's nothing."**

The comm room was silent for a few moments before Peppy finally spoke.

"Reverse it and hold at 38.5."

The replay wound back until it froze on a still image of the strange ship.

Seeing it once more immediately brought back the uneasy feeling Fox felt before, and he had to force himself from turning away.

"Status report."

Fox admired Peppy's stoicism, the rabbit visibly unaffected by whatever sensation that had plagued him.

" **Seventeen minutes out, no Alliance ships in the area."**

"Take us in, Joker, fast and quiet. This mission just got a lot more complicated."

"A small strike team can move quickly without drawing attention. It's our best chance to secure the artifact." Fox couldn't see it, but he knew the Nihlus was agitated. This mission was important, even critical, and now an unknown variable had thrown a wrench in the works of a very delicate plan.

"Suit up and meet us in the cargo hold."

The turian was already leaving the room as Peppy turned to Fox.

"Tell Grey and Jenkins to suit up, Commander. You're going in."

Fox saluted the captain before following out of the room. At the door, he glanced back, getting one last look at the strange ship. That thing was bad feelings personified, and for the first time in a long while, he was nervous about a mission, one increasingly prominent thought reiterating itself in his thoughts.

 _I have a bad feeling about this._

* * *

"Your team's the muscle in this operation, Commander. Go in heavy and head straight for the dig site."

Fox watched Peppy through the HUD of his tactical visor, splitting his attention between the Captain's speech and performing one last check up on the electronics in his suit. Jenkins' and Bill's life signs were coming in smooth and steady, and his barriers were at full capacity. Comms were clear and his weapons were primed, in other words he was ready and eager to start this mission. Time was a factor so the sooner they started, the better.

"What about survivors, Captain?" Bill wondered. The canine was always a bleeding heart, and Fox knew what his priorities would be, regardless of the mission parameters

"Helping survivors is a secondary objective. The artifact is your top priority."

Fox glanced to Bill, noticing the dissatisfied expression put up by the dog as Joker queued the first drop point.

'Nihlus, you're coming with us?" Jenkins asked.

Fox liked Jenkins. He was a good kid, as innocent as a school boy with a heart of gold. A little too eager for combat though, Fox would have to keep an eye on him, make sure he didn't do anything too rash and get himself killed.

"I move faster on my own." The turian answered, already moving to the open ramp.

Honestly, Fox wasn't all that surprised. The specter was probably better off without them. He could more than handle himself anyways.

"Nihlus will scout ahead. He'll feed you status reports throughout the mission. Otherwise, I want radio silence."

'Don't worry Captain, we've got his back."

Peppy nodded. "Mission's yours now, Commander. Good luck."

Peppy turned away to head back to the CIC as Fox signaled for his team to move towards the ramp. He would have preferred to take at least one more soldier for the operation, but Bill and Jenkins were the only ones he had previous experience with. And if there was one thing Fox learned in his military career, it was that bringing people you didn't know on a mission was nothing more than a tactical liability.

"Ready?" He looked to his two squadmates as the Great Fox hovered to a stop just above the drop zone. They were far from the artifact's last known location, but this was the closest Joker could get them without exposing their ship to ground fire.

"We'll follow your lead, Sir." Bill answered as both canines prepared to jump.

"Good, then let's get this done." Before the last word left Fox's mouth, the vulpine tensed and dove backwards in an effortlessly controlled freefall off the exit ramp, landing moments later with nimble precision as his boots casually kissed the soil.

Following after him and distinctly lacking the tod's elegance, Bill and Jenkins hit the dirt at a stumble, recovering quickly as they jogged after the already departing Commander.

"You've got to tell me how you do that." Bill grumbled as he fell in step beside Fox, the canine's eyes cautiously scanning their surroundings as he spoke.

"I already told ya, lots of yoga." Fox replied with a grin.

"Yep, and I still don't believe you. I've never even seen you take any classes, or even do any of the positions."

"You think I'd do it on the ship?" Fox looked to the dog askance.

Thinking it over, the canine shrugged. "Suppose not."

Eyeing past Bill, Fox watched Jenkins as the marine approached one of the floating creatures scattered about the field they were passing through.

"Don't worry about them, marine. They're completely docile."

The dog turned to Fox, allowing the vulpine to see the young soldier's innocent grin. "I know Mister Mccloud, Sir. I just wanted to get a closer peep at em. Never seen a gasbag back home, just lots of farm animals."

"Honestly, they're not much to look at, just living balloons." Bill replied indifferently, nudging away a curious floating animal with the barrel of his lancer.

"All right, rally up." Fox noticed that his team was starting to spread a little thin. "Don't forget the mission brief. We need to get to that artifact before the enemy does."

Reminded of what was at stake, Bill and Jenkins quickly rejoined Fox as the vulpine led them down the path to a ridge with a high incline. Not seeing any hostiles, but knowing that could change at a moment's notice, Fox signaled with his paw and his comrades took cover in the outcropping of rocks scattered about the cliff's footpath. They advanced slowly up the road, searching for targets.

In the distance, they could see the billowing stacks of smoke rising from the colony, the charcoal black columns grimly reminding them off the seriousness of the situation.

"Jenkins, stay in formation." Fox called out to the overly eager marine as he started to wander out of position.

Fox was saddened to see the state of the colony that had once been a beacon of progress to their people. He knew that after this incident, faith in the Alliance's defense force would plummet and colonial stocks would take a steep nosedive as investors hurried to salvage their assets. He could only hope that whatever this forerunner artifact was, that it would be worth the catastrophe that sprung up in the wake of its discovery.

"Damnit Jenkins, if you don't stay in position I'll send you back to the Great Fox and have the Captain deal with you." Fox growled in irritation as the youthful marine once more began to stray.

'Right, sorry sir." The canine turned to hurriedly rejoin the group.

A faint hum drew the party to a halt as their eyes turned to the source of the strange noise. Then, without warning, a handful of low flying objects zipped into sight at the top of the inclined path. Too fast to see, the team couldn't get a good look at what they could be.

Then… they opened fire.

Fox watched in shock as a flurry of blue bolts erupted from the weapon mounts underneath the small machines, the mass accelerated munitions finding their mark in the unfortunate marine who was found out of cover. Jenkins jerked violently with the likeness of a marionette puppet as his body was perforated by a storm of pellets, each the size of a grain of sand.

The vulpine threw himself behind a boulder as the hail of lethal ammunition trailed its way towards him, the hovering killing machines unrelenting as they continued to unleash their fatal payload.

"BILL!"

At the sound of his shout, one of the machines was abruptly enveloped in a cobalt sphere of energy, arresting its attack and considerably reducing the volume of fire directed at Fox. The vulpine pulled himself out of cover, sighted the paralyzed machine, and sent a volley of lancer fire into its chassis, riddling the drone full of tiny holes. His barrier waned under the retaliatory barrage, but absorbed the handful of bullets directed at him as he ducked behind the boulder once more, the smoking husk of the machine he destroyed being the last thing he saw as it crashed to the ground.

Another one of the machines met its end shortly after, brought down by an accurate burst of fire from Bill.

The final drone, perhaps trying hoping to relay information back to its owner, abruptly turned about and raced down the way it had come.

A single shot rang out and a new hole appeared in the flying robot's side. Whatever that round hit cut the power to the drone's means of propulsion. Now, with its engine disabled, the machine tumbled out of the sky, splitting in half as it smashed against a rock.

Fox rose up from behind the boulder, rifle barrel smoking, as he scanned the sky in search of any more of these killer machines. Seeing that the area was clear for the moment, he raced to the prone form of Jenkins, where Bill was already kneeling and checking the canine's life signs, a pointless effort, as most of the canine's blood was currently outside of his body.

Fox's HUD already told him what he needed to know, but some small sliver of the tod hoped that it was wrong, that he had not just lost one of his teammates minutes after the start of the mission.

"Sorry Fox… he's gone." Bill took his finger away from the fallen marine's throat and turned to him with a deep set frown, gesturing to one of the broken machines as he stood up. "Whatever these things are, they ripped right through his shields, never stood a chance."

Fox forced down the growl he felt rising in his chest and wiped away the approaching tide of emotions. There was neither time nor place for regret, not with what was at stake. Though he despised it, they had to press on, if for no other reason than to give meaning to Jenkins' death and ensure that he did not waste his life. There were other people that he could still save.

"We'll see that he receives a proper service after the mission. But I need you to stay focused, Bill." Fox didn't want his friend to suffer the same fate because he was distracted.

"Aye, aye, Sir!" The canine nodded grimly.

Fox gave one last parting look at the fallen marine before pushing on, praying that Jenkins would be the only death in his squad on this mission.

They reached the top of the trail only a few moments later, and seeing that it was clear, they started off in the direction of the artifact, its last location zeroed in on their HUD's nav system. It was only a short trek away from their current position, and they should be on it in a few minutes.

All remained quiet till they were about halfway to the dig site. That was when Fox heard the unforgettable thunder of an M7 lancer, followed by the strange electronic warble he had come to recognize as the enemy's weapons.

Realizing that there were still survivors, Fox's and Bill's pace quickened as the hurried to the location of the firefight, hoping they would arrive in time to save them.

Fox was the first to get eyes on the situation, Bill only seconds behind him as they arrived at the crest of the small hill. Below them, he could make out a lone marine, taking refuge behind a particularly large boulder. He was startled to recognize the soldier, her pink and white armor near impossible to forget. Fox was even more startled that he recognized her attackers, the pearlescent blue, bipedal machines laying down an unforgiving barrage of fire as they closed in on her position.

But there was no time to worry about that.

"Bill."

"Already on it, Sir." The canine was enveloped in a blue aura as he made a fist with his paw and pulled sharply.

At the bottom of the hill one of the robots was cloaked in a similar glow and began to rise. The machine flailed its arms wildly as it tried to correct its sudden and unexpected loss of balance, but Bill's biotic attack negated the unit's gravity, leaving it helpless as it floated in the air.

With this same tactic, Fox finished off the robot. The machine's barrier failed just as the vulpine's rifle overheated, the last round to exit the barrel smashing through its optics. The final machine was brought down by the combined fire of both Bill and the other marine, dropping the robot in a hail of gunfire.

Leaving his rifle to cool, Fox slung it on his back and turned to the female marine who acknowledged him with a salute, despite her current condition. The feline's armor was worn down and encrusted with mud and blood that didn't belong to her. No doubt as she was the only soldier within sight, she had lost most, if not all the members of her unit. And yet she still carried herself with strength. She was a tough one, of that he was certain.

"Gunnery Chief Miyu Lynx of the 212, you the one in charge here, Sir?"

Fox didn't see any visible injuries on her, but he wasn't sure she was unharmed. "Are you wounded, Lynx?"

"Just some scrapes and bruises… the others weren't so lucky." She replied with a sharp toothed grimace. "We were patrolling the perimeter when the attack hit. We tried to get out a distress call, but they cut off our communications. I've been fighting for my life ever since." The cat trudged over to one of the fallen machined and delivered a swift kick into its side. "What are the Geth doing here, Sir?"

"They haven't been seen outside the Veil in over 200 years." Bill ran his omni tool over one of the downed machines, and frowned when his scan proved unsuccessful. "Its data's been wiped, probably some kind of defensive protocol."

"They have to be after the artifact. The dig site is close, just over that rise. It might still be there if we hurry up."

Whatever happened, they had to retrieve the artifact before the Geth stole it. They'd work faster with another team member and he had no intention of leaving her to fend for herself.

"We could use your help, Lynx."

The feline growled an affirmative. "Aye, Sir. It's time for payback."

"Good, then let's move out."

* * *

When they arrived at the dig site, his team soon learned the artifact had been moved. Miyu hypothesized that the researchers must have transferred it to the camp after the attack. And so hoping that their objective would be there, Fox and his squad dashed to the encampment.

At the top of the hill they were welcomed by a grisly sight, unlike anything Fox or the others had ever seen before, it becoming readily apparent that they had been too late to save the researchers.

Even during the Blitz, Fox had never seen something so cruel as what the geth had done to the colonists. The bloodied stakes of half a dozen strange machines were clustered together at the edge of the small campsite. Upon each of the barbaric devices, a corpse was impaled through the chest and it appeared as if those vicious machines had an even more insidious purpose.

The cadavers had been vandalized by whatever foreign technology the geth possessed. Invasive tubes and wires, fed alien electronics throughout their desiccated flesh, siphoning any valuable minerals for an insidious purpose, unknown to all but the geth.

Revulsion was primary amongst the horrified sensations felt by Fox and his team. This surpassed desecration of the dead; this was a perversion against nature. There was nothing left of those people. They were just… husks. And their horror only ascended to new heights as it appeared the geth were not done with the violated corpses of the unfortunate researchers.

The towering spikes slowly descended, lowering the cadavers to the earth… and that was when they started moving.

"Oh God, they're still alive!" Bill cried out in horror as they watched the mutilated corpses peel off the impaling spikes and stumble towards them, stricken numb by the horrific manner of change with which the machined had transformed their people.

"What did the geth do to them?" Miyu demanded with an enraged growl, though even she took an involuntary step back as the corrupted bodies of individuals she once knew shambled towards them.

Fox shouldered his lancer and discarded his reservations as sighted his first target. "I don't know, but what I do know is that they are beyond saving." Squeezing the trigger of his rifle, the vulpine targeted the closest moving corpse… what he had subconsciously designated as a husk, and slammed a half a dozen mass accelerated rounds into its disfigured chest cavity. He didn't know what gender the poor creature had once been, or even what species of lylatian it may have once resembled, but he tried his best not to dwell on that as he focused on doing his duty. There may yet be others he could still save.

It was a few moments before his companions had the nerve to follow in his footsteps, though their reluctance changed quickly as the zombified researchers flailed towards them, howling in a maddened charge.

The first of the monsters to rush forwards was also the first to earn its final death, flown backwards after becoming the unlucky recipient of a bioticly charged throw. The husk smashed wetly into the wall of a nearby building with a sickening _thwack_ as whatever was left of its bones crushed into powder against the unforgiving steel _._

Miyu was the next to end the tortured existence of one of the weaponized corpses. Despite her reluctance, she carried out the grim task with unenthusiastic efficiency, a small burst from her lancer sufficient enough in vacating the contents of its skull.

Fox only hesitated for a brief moment before he dropped his next target, sickened by the sight of the mindless corpse's fall to the dirt in a pool of strangely luminescent liquid.

The shambling creatures proved to be little challenge, the rest cut down with relative ease not long after the first. The vulpine suspected their purpose was to act as more of a hindrance on enemy combatants then as a genuine threat.

As the last of the husks dropped to the ground, they looked for any signs of the forerunner artifact. In their efforts they stumbled upon the first bit of good news they had yet to come across. There were a few survivors huddled in one of the locked hab buildings, though their mental state was questionable at best, they were helpful enough to pinpoint the location of the artifact, which had been moved from the dig site to the nearby starport.

Fox left the surviving researchers with an unnecessary warning to stay indoors before ordering his team to move on. When they reached the hill overseeing the entrance to the port, Fox picked up on a distant sound, a solitary gunshot. But before he could focus on that they were once more set upon by the geth, though this time the hostile machines were augmented with more of their zombified monstrosities.

However, with Bill's Biotics and Miyu's commendable soldiery, they were able to make swift work of the attacking units, pressing forwards to the port's cargo station, where their penchant for bad luck returned in full force.

* * *

"So… who's the turian?" Miyu wondered as she approached the alien's motionless body, the feline turning to the now stone faced vulpine Commander.

"That's Nihlus." Fox answered impassively, wondering why everything was going wrong that day. First Jenkins was killed, then the geth repurposed their dead to create an army of techno zombies, the artifact was yet to be recovered, and now a council specter had been killed.

This was why he hated Mondays.

"He's a council specter." Bill answered unhelpfully.

"Wait, movement!" Miyu called out, signaling towards one of the crates resting at the very back of the dock.

"Wait, don't shoot. I'm not a machine." A terrified voice called out, moments before the shivering form of a reptilian dockworker rose into eyesight.

Bill stepped forwards to interrogate the reptile and police him for weapons. Meanwhile, Fox leaned down to Nihlus' corpse, hoping he might find a clue as to what had managed to kill a council specter. As troublesome as the Geth were, they would hardly be much of a threat for an experienced operative like Nihlus

His investigation was brief, the answer becoming apparent almost instantly. Someone, or something, had put a hole through the back of the turian's head, close enough that his barriers didn't activate. And seeing as how Fox had a feeling not even the geth could get a drop on a veteran council agent, something else had to have gone down.

"Commander, I think you might want to hear what this guy is saying." Miyu called him away from his inspection and Fox reluctantly made his way over.

"Right, now tell him what you told me." Bill prompted the shifty looking dockworker with a nudge from his rifle, which proved to be more than enough to open the flood gates.

"I saw what happened to that turian, the other one, he shot him!" The reptile glanced around uneasily, wringing his hands as he scanned his surroundings.

"Other one?"

"Yeah, your friend, I think he called him Saren. After that your friend started to relax, let his guard down. And Saren killed him, shot him right in the back. I'm just lucky he didn't see me behind the crates. After that, he jumped on the cargo train, probably headed to the artifact."

Fox didn't know why, but the name was familiar to him… and a turian, leading the geth in an attack on a lylatian colony? He had no idea what this all meant, but he knew they didn't have time to worry about it.

"Come on, we need to get to the artifact!" Already certain that the dockworker would keep his head down, Fox urged his team onwards to the artifact.

More geth were waiting for them deeper inside the starport, though through sheer desperation and skill, they were able to put down the force guarding the train station.

Fox knew they were negative on time, and that Saren might very well already have the artifact, but he kept pushing his team onwards anyways. They couldn't afford to give up… so they fought, through hordes of geth units, from the smaller drones to the towering assault platforms, always just barely managing to curb the battle in their favor with a steady combination of biotic power and old fashioned brute strength.

Halfway through the firefight, Bill's omni-tool detected a faint trace of nuclear energy, Fox soon realizing that the geth had placed demo charges in the starport. This forced him to slow their advance as they had to find each bomb and defuse it if there was any hope of Eden Prime to remain as a lylatian colony by the end of this.

With Bill's expertise in bomb defusal, the threat had been averted, but they lost valuable time that they would not be able to regain and the canine was exhausted after heavy use of his biotics. That left Miyu and Fox to lead the spearhead deeper into the port, where they finally reached the artifacts last known position. A final small team of husks and a pair of geth units stood in their way but were quickly shut down by an overly aggressive feline and a suitably pissed off fox.

A quick investigation of the area later, revealed no existence of the turian, the alien either having fled from their approach or perhaps already finding what he needed, departed. Whatever the case, they did find it… the forerunner artifact.

Fox wasn't sure what to make of it, wondering if perhaps it was not what they were looking for. He had seen pictures and heard stories about these mystic relics left behind by their predecessors, and the technological, groundbreaking marvels they contained, yet nothing prepared him for what lay before his eyes.

For one, it did not match any of the photos, nor did it look like what had been described to him before. This was… different. Strangely ovular and composed of a fascinating, virtually luminescent material, its appearance more closely resembled a container of some design, or perhaps a sarcophagus.

Whatever it was, at least they had found it. The vulpine stood to the side and prepared to call The Great Fox in for pickup, just happy that Jenkins' sacrifice, and that made by the people of Eden Prime, would not be wasted.

Keeping the call brief, he finished up within moments and turned back to his team, where he watched uneasily as Miyu approached the forerunner artifact. Just as he opened his muzzle to order her to back away, she placed her paw on the relic… and all hell broke loose.

Fox was nearly thrown to the ground as a shockwave blasted out from an origin point Fox realized was the newly activated forerunner artifact. Bill was thrown across the small yard, hurtling through the air until he landed roughly in the corner.

Though, the pulse seemed to have a different effect on Miyu.

Rather than pushed away, the feline was pulled closer to the artifact, now kneeling beside the relic with both paws planted firmly upon it as the device was absorbed in a bright light so intense, Fox could not directly look at it.

Yet the vulpine forced himself to stand, fighting to close the gap with the stricken cat. He wasn't sure what was happening, but he would not let another member of his team come to harm. With sheer force of will, Fox clawed the fifteen steps it took till he was standing just behind the feline, and not wasting even a fraction of a second, he firmly clamped his grip on her shoulders and tore her away from the artifact, utilizing every ounce of strength in his body to throw her as far away as he could.

Moments after her grip was lost on the relic, it pulsed again, with double the force and Fox now found himself stuck in the same position as the girl he just rescued, forced to prostrate before the ancient device. No matter how hard he fought, he couldn't stop his paws from reaching out to hold the forerunner artifact. And soon his awareness began to fade as a blinding light forced him into unconsciousness.

* * *

After what seemed like an eternity the pressure in the air slowly dissipated, until Bill was finally able to stand on his own two legs. Fighting off a migraine even more intensive then an episode from his L2 implants, the canine immediately turned to the artifact where a concerned feline attempted to wake up their comatose Commander.

"I shouldn't have done that, I shouldn't have touched it." Miyu mewled as she unsuccessfully tried to wake up the passed out vulpine.

Yet Bill himself relaxed upon seeing that Fox was still breathing, and was merely asleep.

"It's alright Miyu, he'll be okay. We just have to get him back to the ship." He patted the cat on the shoulder and moved lower to lift his squad leader in an over-the-shoulder carry.

Taking a moment to compose herself, Miyu nodded and after inhaling deeply, motioned towards the artifact. "What do we do about that?"

Bill was about to suggest leaving the damned thing where it was when he choked on the words.

The artifact, it was… alive?

Once dormant but no longer, the object of forerunner design radiated with a nigh blinding light, previously hidden sigils of resplendent gold now burning with a blazing brilliance so bright he could scarcely gaze upon it. As illiterate as Bill was in the language of a long dead species, the radiant iconography was captivating nonetheless, unlike anything he had ever seen before.

Bill had no idea what the hell that was about, but he did know one thing.

"Well… I suppose we'll just have to take that with us."


	2. Chapter 2

Last Light

 _Blurred images flitted through his consciousness like fresh paint on an inky canvas, tarnished mosaics that displayed moving pictures in real time, yet were near indescribable to his uncomprehending mind._

 _He could see countless worlds glowing brightly with soothing light, prosperous, hopeful souls living in an age of golden wonder. There was peace, there was prosperity, there was the light._

 _Then, there was darkness._

 _A great hurricane of blackness swept in from the void, raining down destruction and ruin upon the people of light._

 _There was a great war, spanning decades… centuries. New images surfaced, blurred reflections of a period so horrible he could hardly describe what was shown to him, atrocities on a scale so colossal it was impossible to fathom. World were lost in darkness, entire civilizations swept away by the advancing tide that sought to consume all vestments of the light._

 _There was a fall, the cradle of their civilization, their last bastion, a sacrifice made, and the darkness abated._

 _New lights emerged, minute sparks that struggled to bring back the brilliance of a dying star. Their cause was just, and over the centuries, the light of a benevolent god shone bright once more._

 _It was not to last._

 _The darkness returned, the once warring tribes unified in an effort to stamp out the light once and for all. Another war was waged, larger in scope than its predecessor. They fought to preserve the light… and failed._

 _Their worlds were taken, their advanced technologies pilfered, their greatest warriors slain, their light… consumed._

 _In their final battle, the last gate was destroyed, their greatest hero struck down by the physical manifestation of darkness, and their people lost to the void they fought so hard to repel._

 _A fragmented story with even more fragmented visions, all crammed into the skull of a single vulpine._

Fox awoke with a start, gasping for breath as the strange dream slowly faded. It had felt so… real. Yet as he slowly became aware of his surroundings, the meaning of the dream and the contents of it itself began to fade, even as he struggled to cling to what he felt was significant in some way, that to lose it would be to lose the message it meant to relay.

"Doctor, Doctor Chakwas, I think he's waking up!"

What he came to recognize as a recently acquainted voice was enough for him to temporarily forget the strange dream and focus on his current status. He could tell by the medical sigils on the walls of the room and various monitoring equipment filling the chamber with gentle tones, that he was back on the Great Fox, and that the female soldier from Eden Prime was there as well.

Groaning as the muscles in his aching body protested his efforts, Fox shifted into a seated posture, the clack of military issue heels slapping sharply against the deck, drawing his focus as he turned to watch the recognizable figure of Doctor Chakwas come from behind him.

He knew the middle-aged raccoon very well considering the years they had served together, and counted her amongst one of his very few close friends.

"You had us worried there Mccloud, how are you feeling."

"Honestly, like a used doormat." He winced, the very action of rubbing his brown causing pain. "How long was I out, and how'd I get here?"

"You've been out for around fifteen hours, something happened down there with the artifact I think." The Doctor answered.

"It's my fault." Miyu spoke up, the feline stepping into view with an apologetic mien, arms folded close to her chest.

Fox could believe that he was out for fifteen hours, seeing as the Gunnery Chief had time to shower and slip into a uniform.

"I must have triggered some security field."

"It's alright marine, we all make mistakes. I just hope you've learned from this. No touching ancient alien artifacts of unknown power." He chuckled, weakly, his vocal cords rough from either misuse or, as he hoped was not true, screaming in pain as the relic friend his brain.

"Where is it now?" He wondered, it being obvious what he was referencing.

"After you pulled me out of the way and had yourself knocked out cold by the artifact, it… well it looks like it's been activated, whatever that might entail. Not knowing what else to do, we took you back to the ship and a shuttle came by to retrieve it. Since then, it's been sitting in the cargo hold."

"What do you mean by activated?"

"Just that…" Miyu replied, somewhat mystified. "The things glowing with this blinding golden _light_ , hardly anyone can get close enough to get a reading off of it, not that there are many people on the ship willing to. What scans we have pulled off it reveal absolutely nothing, zilch, nada. It's like it's not even there."

The word light had an effect on Fox, the vulpine recalling the strange dream he had. He didn't know why, but that term resonated within him.

"Physically, you're fine." Chakwas interjected, resuming her duties the ship's medical officer. "But I detected some unusual brain activity, abnormal beta waves. I also noticed an increase in your rapid eye movement, science usually associated with intense dreaming." The raccoon claimed, eyeing him curiously.

Feeling as if he had been prompted to explain, Fox did his best to describe the peculiarity of his vision. "I saw… I'm not sure what I saw… death, destruction… darkness. Nothing's really clear."

The Doctor rumbled her throat and scratched at her chin. "I'll add this to my report. It may- oh, Captain." She turned to the sound of the med bay's door opening to admit the rabbit.

"How's our XO holding up, Doctor?" Peppy inquired as he entered the room.

"All his readings are normal, I'd say our Commander is going to be just fine."

"Glad to hear it." The rabbit smiled softly as he turned to Fox.

"Mccloud, I need to speak with you…. in private."

Understanding the message, both Miyu and Chakwas quickly departed the room with a salute to the Captain.

Peppy waited till the door closed and they were fully alone before he continued. "That mission was pretty rough on you, not just the artifact, Are you sure you're alright, Fox?"

"I don't like soldiers dying under my command."

"Jenkins wasn't your fault, Fox. You did a good job."

That's what command always told him, not that it made it any easier. Holding a sigh, he decided to shift topics. "Chief Lynx isn't part of the crew." He referred to the fact that she was still on the ship. He would have thought she would have been dropped off at the nearest alliance garrison.

"Since we're down a soldier and her unit was wiped out, I figured we could use her. She's been reassigned to the Great Fox."

Fox couldn't find any fault in Peppy's reasoning. She was an excellent soldier, skilled, determined, and willing to put the extra effort in any combat situation. She'd make for a good replacement for Jenkins, as sad as that was to consider. But as upset as he was about Jenkins, he was even more pissed at the alliance.

"Intel dropped the goddamn ball, Sir. We were not at all prepared for what we walked into."

"Geth haven't been seen outside the veil for over 200 hundred years. No one could have predicted this, Fox. And I won't lie to you. Things look bad. A colony was attacked, Nihlus is dead, and the Geth are invading. The only silver lining from all this is that we managed to recover the artifact, and even then we don't know what's happening to it."

"What _is_ happening with it, Sir?" From what he heard from Miyu, it appeared as if the artifact was active.

"I can't tell you for sure. Both passive and intensive scanning has proved ineffective. From the reports I've read on it before the attack, it wasn't like this. Whatever happened when you touched it, altered that. Now, we have a live forerunner artifact on the ship. I can tell you, it's making the whole crew uneasy."

"I want to see it." Fox didn't know why, but something inside him was telling him that he needed to go back.

"Are you sure, Fox? The last time you were around it, it put you in a coma for fifteen hours. Who knows what might happen if you were to interact with it now." Peppy's concern was palpable in his tone and uncertain expression.

"I can't explain it, Sir. But I just feel as if I need to. There's this feeling, and I can't shake it, but it's telling me that whatever that artifact is, it's important. Something about it is different than the others."

"I'm all for gut feelings, son. But we can't afford to risk the ship and its crew. There's no telling what affect it could have."

"Please, Sir. You just have to trust me. Have I ever been wrong before? And besides, better something bad happen here on a ship in space, then inside the citadel with millions of innocent civilians."

This gave Peppy pause, the rabbit taking a few moments to ponder his suggestions. "I don't like this idea at all. However, if you feel it's that important I'll give the go ahead. But if there's even a hint that something is going wrong I'll jettison the entire cargo hold into space. Are you willing to take the risk?"

"Yes." Fox answered immediately.

Peppy sighed in resignation, a faint chuckle passing through his lips. "Very well, I'll inform the technicians that you'll be heading down to see it. I hope you're gut feeling pays off once again, Fox. I'd have to hate to tell James that I spaced his son."

"Believe me, Sir. You won't regret it." Fox assured him.

Peppy concluded their conversation with the news that now he had awoken, the Great Fox would be heading back to the relay to report in with the Citadel. Fox wasn't looking forward to the oncoming debriefing, but hoped his hunch about the artifact would pay off.

Bidding the Captain goodbye, the vulpine followed after him into the hall, where Miyu was waiting for him.

"So Sir, what's the plan?" The feline inquired as she quickly fell in step behind him.

"I'm going to take another look at that artifact."

The sound of her footsteps beside him faded and the vulpine turned to see her standing in place in the hallway several feet behind him.

"You what? Respectfully, Sir, that thing is dangerous."

"Correct, and I intend to see if it was worth all the trouble we put into getting it." He answered calmly before resuming towards the elevator, where a slightly nervous feline joined him.

"Still think it's a bad idea." She grumbled.

"Duly noted."

A few minutes later and the lift deposited them in the cargo bay of the ship. The Great Fox was unusually large for a cruiser, with a crew of just under 400. Like the overall design, the cargo hold too was unusually spacious, accommodating a small section of Kodiak shuttles, a handful of strike craft and even a pair of landmaster rovers.

But he was more interested in the strange relic sitting at the far end of the bay, sectioned off by a small squad of marines who were having a difficult time warding off the crowd of off-duty onlookers.

Fox tried to ignore the fact it was situated right beside the ramp.

He had a feeling that nothing would go wrong. After all, he was certain he had expended all his bad luck tokens for the week. It was about time that something went right.

As he approached the cordon, the marine in front, a rather intimidating ursine, acknowledged his existence with a curt salute and rumbling voice heavily inflected with the accent of his homeworld. "Glad to see you back on your feet, Commander. The Captain just radioed in that you were planning on taking a look at this blasted thing."

"It's good to see you too Misha. And Peppy was right, that's the plan."

"Can't say it's smart, but I'm curious." The bear admitted with a growling chuckle. "Nikola and I just made a bet, he says you'll be put in a comma for thirty hours this time. I bet sixty." The following grin was slightly apologetic.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Fox muttered.

"Anytime Mccloud. My squad will clear the area and then you can get started with… whatever it is you are going to do." The bear stepped away and soon after the crowd followed, till it was just Fox and Miyu standing near the artifact.

"You know…" He turned back to the cat, gesturing to the place where the rest of the crew had retreated to. "You can wait over there if you want." He had no intention of forcing her to be here with him in the ever increasing likelihood that shit would hit the fan.

"My squad gave their lives for this thing, Fox. I intend to see this out the whole way through." The feline answered with a determined glint in her eyes. "Plus… I kinda maybe just might have joined their bet."

"Really?" He was actually quite surprised, the feline sure moved quickly.

"Yeah, I bet you'd get spaced."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence…. You do realize that'd include you as well?"

"Bah, my reflexes would save me." The feline waived off with a scoff.

Fox shook his head, frowning as a thought suddenly came to him. "Hey, where's Bill?"

"The biotic? He stayed by your bed for a few hours till Chakwas chased him off and 'politely suggested' that he should get rest some rest. He's been sleeping since then."

"Too bad, I'm certain he would have wanted to be here for this."

"Sure… who wouldn't want to mess with an ancient alien relic that nearly fried your commander's brain."

Leaving the feline's comment unmolested, Fox turned towards the golden radiance emitting from the artifact. Here it was, the object a whole colony had been invaded for and triggered the arrival of a race of machines that had been in seclusion for centuries. Fox was starting to see why the geth might have had a vested interest in it. He couldn't even begin to guess as to what the strange pods purpose was, but the fact it radiated light and was heavily decorated by forerunner glyphs just screamed _"look at me I'm important."_

Now that he was here, Fox was somewhat nervous with the fact he intended to make contact with it once again. But his curiosity had him press onwards. He wanted to know the meaning behind that bizarre vision. Perhaps this artifact had the answers sought by the civilized galaxy for thousands of years.

What happened to the forerunners?

What was the reason for their disappearance?

As a kit in the various schools of the fleet, he had been fascinated by the tales of an ancient precursor civilization so advanced that scientist struggled to understand the technology left in the wake of their inexplicable passing.

This was his chance to discover their fate, not only that, but to be the first to put answers to the age old questions asked by so many, and that was enough to stay his fears and propel his feet to stand by the device once more.

Miyu remained close by, but he noticed that she was still far enough that she'd have time to react if things started to go south.

Fox chuckled softly at that before returning his full attention to the artifact before him. Fascinated, he studied the runes ornamenting the ovular contraption. Scholars had yet to fully translate the forerunner language, only just barely grasping the meaning behind a handful of runes in their immense alphabet. It was no surprise then, that Fox couldn't understand a single one of them. And yet, as he looked down upon the glowing hieroglyphs, he did _feel_ something from them.

It was strange, but the sight of the bold artistry of the alien script set him at ease. He felt comfortable… serene, as if his soul was immersed in soothing warmth. It brought an unconscious smile to his lips, images and memories of his family summoned to the fore of his thoughts.

There was just something… good, about the artifact, something… noble. He didn't understand what brought this assertion, but he couldn't shake the notion. He was no longer afraid of it, but he did feel compelled to touch it once more.

Uncertain, but trusting in his instincts, Fox once more placed his paw on the forerunner artifact.

He remembered the first time he touched it, a blazing light burned so bright it scalded his mind… This time was different. Cool, yet warm to the touch, it was a peculiar feeling that graced the pads on his palm, but not at all uncomfortable. Where the light once burned, it now draped over his thoughts like a warm blanket on a cold night.

The glyphs on the artifact flickered, and were now different. He looked down upon them, somehow able to understand them… if only just. He realized they were not so much words, as impressions on the mind, relying on emotion to express their idea. Perhaps some kind of empathic technology?

Fox felt a myriad of sensations as he observed the alien glyphs, something about _release… hope._ He didn't understand what that meant, but he did recognize the intent behind the two newest runes that suddenly appeared on the illuminant alloy.

He was unsure if he should key the prompt, but he had a good feeling about the artifact now, and so pushing aside his reservations, he dropped a padded digit and pressed it firmly against the rune he chose.

The response was near instantaneous. The alien scripture ornamenting the forerunner device flashed out of existence, and Fox watched in awe as a beam of light sprung forth into reality, trailing a line down the center of the ovular relic. Small horizontal pathways branched off as the artifact began a process Fox did not understand. Though it was clear he had triggered something.

Then, with a sharp hiss of unrestricted air, the artifact split open. Like a flower in full bloom, luminescent sheets of metal separated from the top and peeled backwards, releasing a gaseous silvery vapor that rose up from the newly opened pod before slowly retreating back within.

Fully realizing what he had done, Fox looked back to Miyu.

The feline had seemingly forgotten that she was attempting to keep a safe distance, and now stood just behind Fox, Miyu's amber gaze mirroring the vulpine's own wonder. For whatever it might mean, the artifact now revealed its purpose.

It was not a cache of advanced technology, nor was it a reliquary of ascendant knowledge, but merely… a container.

But the greatest question remained.

What did it contain?

Fox's wonder was suddenly terminated as a strange sound resonated from within the forerunner vessel, and he was stricken numb by what that portended.

Whatever lay inside the container… it was alive.

* * *

 _The sky itself was on fire._

 _What space was not lit a flame was occupied with the vessels of the enemy; Fallen Ketches disgorged hordes of SIVA infused warriors, the vultures tearing into the city's archives, armories, and research centers, pilfering the knowledge of humanity's greatest minds._

 _Kabal dreadnoughts shattered walls that had withstood the darkness for an eon and destroyed any vessel brave enough to oppose them. Priceless works of art and the hope of a people was so much ash underneath the cannons of an alien fleet._

 _Hive tomb ships deployed swarms of thralls, led by an abyssal host of taken executioners that ravaged the civilian habitation blocks. The cries of agony and appeals for mercy of a doomed populace echoed throughout the once unbreakable bastion of human might._

 _The time manipulation capabilities of the Vex warped legions of mechanized assassins that tore deep into the flesh of The Last City, corroding their defenses from within and sowing the groundwork for their destruction._

 _Those that still lived fled to the final gate that still stood, the last refuge for their scattered people that lay at the heart of their flagging metropolis. The tower, the last bastion of hope still flickered dimly with the light, though its defenders were few, they were tenacious and unrelenting._

 _The guardians, humanity's defenders, waged a desperate battle from their seat of power. Many had already been lost to the dark, but the survivors fought on, even as their world collapsed around them for a second time. The few that remained rallied at the site they decided would be their last stand, the gates of the tower itself._

 _This was something he had never hoped to see again. As long a life as he had endured, it had not prepared him for the knowledge that he might live long enough to see the end of his people. Yet regardless of his sorrow, he fought on knowing he could do nothing else. He could not afford to dwell on inconsequential things like grief._

 _He was the last of the lords, what he considered a terrible irony, as he had been the most reluctant amongst them, and what many of his brothers and sisters had claimed, a charlatan. Yet here he stood, at the golden gate of the last stronghold of their race, leading those guardians that remained in their solemn duty._

 _The guardian could have fled, as he had once before, but he had made his mind. This was it, where he would stand for the last time. He was tired of running. It was time he faced the end he deserved. He had been left with less than a hundred to defend a gate that required at least five times that number to properly hold, all fresh recruits, not even half a century under their belts._

 _They were to be the next generation to uphold the Traveler's light._

 _Now… they would be the last._

 _He held no illusions that they would win. He knew that this would be the last battle between the light and the dark._

 _Shaxx, Cayde, Kora Rey, Zavala, just a few of the many heroes that had given their lives to hold the walls, a selfless act of bravery that ultimately failed. He was all that was left of an ancient legacy, the last of an antediluvian order. Their newest members had succumbed to the dark in the opening centuries of this newest conflict. The darkness bearing all its strength down upon the Travelers' gifted few with merciless fury._

 _A weary sigh passed through his lips as he rose from his genuflection before the fallen form of his last brother._

" _Rest in his light, Saladin."_

 _Together they had staved off the end for time immemorial and Saladin had always joked that he would be first among the two to fall._

 _He found the joke did not hold the amusement it once did._

" _My lord, what do we do?"_

 _He turned away from the corpse of the greatest friend he had ever known, the hopeful eyes of a young guardian staring back at him._

 _He smiled at the sight, it banishing his morbid temperament._

 _Here they were, at the twilight of their species, and these pups still clung to the hope they would endure. He envied them, he truly did. They had an even greater faith in their god then he did._

" _What do we do?" He questioned the air, looking up to a sky full of fire and the lumbering ships of their enemy, to a firmament clogged with the scent of gore and despair. Leaning down, he retrieved his helm from the bloodied dirt and donned it, turning to the youthful warlock with a whimsical chuckle._

" _The answer is obvious pup, we fight."_

" _Come little light," he turned to the spherical machine hovering beside his head. "We have work to do."_

 _Stretching forth his gauntlet, an ancient, battered rifle materialized out of the air and he caught it in his deft grasp, gloved hand running over the worn-down grip with fond affection. The weapon was nearly as old as he was, and they had endured countless firefights, side-by-side since the day he had forged it. He thought that if this was indeed to be his final day, that he carry a tool with the most sentimental significance._

" _I told you not to call me that." The small shard of the Traveler muttered sullenly as it hovered after him, disgruntled at the teasing nickname it had been forced to tolerate for many long years._

" _I know." He answered with a lighthearted chuckle._

 _If these pups still clung to hope, then he supposed he would as well._

 _The experienced guardian gazed upon the small crowd of young warriors assembled before him and the once mighty gate, at their tired faces still burning so bright with hope, and remembered why it was he had ever bothered to come back._

 _How could he forsake those in need? He had once before, long ago. And after that day, he vowed he would never abandon them again._

 _He was a guardian of the Travelers' light, the last of the Iron Lords, slayer of Crota, and the champion that had crippled the hive god Oryx. He had destroyed the garden's heart and tore down the house of wolves._

 _He was the bulwark upon which the darkness broke._

 _As long as he lived, he would bring hope to those that remained. After all... he was a guardian._

 _It was in the job description._

* * *

The first thing to bring him back to some semblance of consciousness was a particularly irritating noise, like air forced out of a leaky pipe. Then, he was fully awakened as a jolt of lightening exploded in his chest as he recalled the last memories he possessed.

The gate, it had fallen.

Hate burned like caustic fire as it set his thoughts aflame with righteous fury.

 _ **He**_ had returned. The very personification of darkness, and the vilest creature it had ever conceived. With his power, the defenders had been swept away by his apathetic cruelty. With the gate destroyed, hordes of hive would be unleashed upon those that yet lived, the last remnants of humanity.

This was no time to rest.

It was a fierce struggle as he forced fatigued limbs to surrender to his will. The guardian barely took a moment to register his location, more focused on returning to the fight as quick as he could. Those young guardians still had need of him. He would not let them fight a god alone.

His immediate location was cramped and confined. Perhaps he had been buried in rubble? That was of no consequence, a small obstacle he would overcome. Though as he felt around, it came apparent that he was not buried; only restricted to a space about the approximation of his height.

The way above him was open and he could see light that ushered him onwards with its guiding warmth. Measured yet hastened movements brought him out of his strangely defined prison where he was blinded at first by the light and weakened by his previous injuries and slumber. The guardian barely contained the necessary strength to extract himself from his confinement.

As he crawled out, he realized that he had not been submerged in debris as he once thought, but placed within some kind of device that's purpose was unrecognizable. The light itself was also strange, blinding and artificial. Unlike the warm touch of the sun, it grated on his already blurred vison and made it difficult, if not impossible, to see where exactly he was.

The guardian's strength failed him and he collapsed, the clatter of plasteel plates filling his ears as his armored body roughly impacted the ground. The sound of metal on metal was a surprise to him, as the last place he remembered being had a concrete surface. His experienced perception noted the particular sound as starship grade alloy, and he could hear the gentle rumble of a drive core.

This was a sharp enough revelation to banish the cobwebs in his mind and bring a brief moment of clarity to the miasma of his scattered thoughts.

Had he been captured?

After humanity's last fleet action, which culminated in a pyrrhic victory, they no longer possessed vessels larger than a guardian jumpship. As he did not hear the crack of bone and chitin usually associated with a hive tomb ship, and seeing as vex had no use for space flight, he reasoned that either the cabal or Fallen to be the responsible parties for his incarceration.

He knew not for what purpose they might have for capturing him, only that he was needed back at the city. The young wolves could not hope to survive without him, not against the manner of foe they faced.

But if he was to escape, he needed a weapon. And if he wanted a weapon, he would need the help of his robotic friend.

Opening his mouth, his first efforts to speak only ended in a nasty fit of hacking coughs. It suddenly became a supreme exertion of will to simply inhale oxygen as he choked on what felt like a thick layer of dust coating the interior of his throat. His larynx struggled to form words, as if he had not spoken in a millennia.

It took time but eventually he was able to force some manner of expression from his throat, it coming in the form of a rasping growl.

" _Little… light…"_ He croaked out amidst a coughing fit that had yet to abate.

The answering rebuttal of a sullen machine that he had come to always expect, and even welcome over the many years was absent, his only response coming in the form of a deafening wall of silence.

" _Ghost…"_ He called out weakly. Now slightly panicked, he scrabbled around his surroundings, as if he might find the little AI lying about the deck beside him, seeking out the comforting response of a being that had become his closest friend for as long as he could remember.

But there was no irritated response, no capricious interjection, just the deadening silence of his solitary mind. With growing fear, he realized he could not feel the machine's presence either; his cognizance absent of the usual reassuring awareness of another being that customarily lingered at the back of his thoughts.

There were only two explanations as to why he could not feel the presence of his ghost.

Either they had been separated… or…

Voices disturbed his worried musing, strange and unfamiliar. The speakers were near, and from the increasing volume, drawing nearer. Realizing that he could be in danger, the guardian shifted towards the pod, hoping beyond hope that there might be something within that he could use to defend himself.

Though his focus was murky, indistinct, and narrowed to finding a means of self-defense, a small part of him hazily recognized the unusual dialect being traded back and forth between the two voices. It was not the guttural utterance of the Fallen, or the booming snarling of the Kabal, but earthen in origin, specifically of a nation state that had once existed on the western continent many millennia ago.

He himself had spoken the vernacular and been a part of that sovereign territory, what seemed like an eternity ago. Since, he had all but forgotten more than a handful of words, broken phrases that barely supported the mismatched jumble of nouns, adjectives, and verbs that still lingered somewhere deep within his oldest memories.

Yet as curious a development this was, he did not allow it to cloud his already hazy mind from the gravity of his situation. His vision was clearing slowly, but there was not telling if he could wait to rely on its full recovery before calling himself to action.

Still unable to find the grit to fully rise to his feet, the guardian settled for propping his upper body on his armored kneepads as he stretched a gauntlet into the pod and felt around. Behind him, the voices had grown louder, and he could sense, were directed at him rather than each other.

He strained his muddled mind to come up with some sort of plan, until his plated glove bumped against something familiar. His armored digits quickly tightening around the object, he gathered the remnants of his strength and surged to his feet. The clatter of plasteel filled the air as he moved with a supernatural quickness, his movements enhanced by his close attunement to the light and centuries of hard-earned skill, ensured the path of the recovered blade was near impossible to track. The sword he had forged in the depths of the iron temple split the air with a melodious whistle as it soared towards its target.

* * *

"Is… that can't be. Is that what I think it is?" Miyu's bewildered tone hardly did justice to the overwhelming rush of emotions that overcame her at the sight of the individual crawling out of the pod.

"My god… it's a…. it's a forerunner." Fox's capacity for speech was delayed as he gazed upon something he had never thought he'd see in the entirety of his life. Though its features were concealed underneath a strange suit of armor, Fox could think of no other being that this creature could be other than a flesh and blood embodiment of a culture long thought to have died out.

He watched as a living legend flopped to the deck of a starship and croaked out a scattered phrase in a language that not even his universal translator could decipher. The words were lilting and harmonious, even in their present coarse state, unlike even the melodic asari tongue in its inimitability.

That's when Fox truly realized, this was it… the real deal.

He didn't know whether to call for the Captain or try and help the obviously fraught individual before him. Eventually he settled on neither as he stared on in stupefaction. Fox noted, somewhat clinically as he watched the being writhe on the deck, that the method forerunners' used for stasis was apparently not a kind one.

It took a particularly violent attack of coughing before Fox decided to do something. Taking a nervous step forward, the vulpine hesitantly approached the alien, watching its every move in both fascination and disbelief as he drew closer.

It seemed to be searching for something, its movements growing more erratic and panicked by the second as it failed to find what it sought, its probing path eventually taking it back to the pod where it rummaged inside.

Fox wasn't sure if it was even aware of their existence yet, and it was with uncertainty that he opened his mouth.

"Hello… can you understand me?" The tod was aware that his efforts were most likely futile as it would most likely not be able to understand a single word he said. The being's movements stopped at the sound of his words, and Fox hoped that he might have made some progress.

Then there was a sword in his face.

He had no idea anything could possibly be that fast. One second the forerunner was arm deep inside the stasis pod, next there was a massive bladed weapon hovering an inch from the vulpine's throat, close enough that he could feel the razor sharp edge brush against the fur coating his gullet, just that brief contact shaving several hairs with frightening ease.

The vulpine instantly froze in place, and he could see out of the corner of his eyes that Miyu had likewise instantly ceased all movement. A brief and tense silence dropped over the cargo hold, every pair of eyes secured firmly on the owner of the blade that currently had their commander by the throat.

Fox was unembarrassed to admit that his bowels may or may not have loosened slightly. Not wanting to set off the forerunner who was undoubtedly confused and dissorianted, Fox remained utterly motionless as he studied his possible executioner approach. Though the alien advanced upon him, the sword remained firmly rooted in its current location, one Fox did not particularly care for.

With nothing else to do but watch, he studied the alien with a scrutiny he could confidently conclude was being directed right back at him. Whatever features belonging to this alien were hidden underneath a helmet reminiscent of a time period far back in Lylat's history, in a day and age where crusades had been waged over differing ideologies.

It took no savant to recognize that this particular individual of the forerunner race was not a scientist or scholar. The heavily armored and cloaked hardsuit of archaic design swiftly ruled that out. But why would they see the necessity in preserving a soldier?

Fox wondered this but did not put too much attention on considering the answer as he placed the majority of his processing power into his current dilemma.

All he knew for certain in that moment was that he still had quite a few bad luck tokens left before the week was over.

* * *

With swiftness he halted the edged weapon's descent as his partially recovered vision lingered on a sight he found absolutely extraordinary.

As a guardian gifted what was in essence immortality by the Traveler, he had lived a remarkably long life, a life at times he had considered to be too long. In those uncountable years he had faced all manners of creatures, some defying humanity's perception of the meaning of existence.

What stood before him was no fallen wretch, no hulking kabal warrior or vile hive knight. It was not even a creation of the Vex.

It was an animal, for lack of a better term.

Yet it was no mere terran creation, despite its uncanny resemblance. Foxes, like most of earth's native fauna, had been driven to the edge of extinction by the darkness. And he was absolutely certain that they did not stand on two legs or possess the glint of intelligence in their beastly eyes.

No. What stood before him was… different. Neither man nor beast, it was something in-between, perhaps the result of golden age sciences? He had heard that the geneticists on Venus had been on the precipice of a major scientific breakthrough in genetic manipulation before the planet had been lost to the Vex. Ghost had even managed to recover some of the files before they had lost Venus a second time.

Ghost…

Turning away from the creature but keeping his blade at its throat, he scanned his immediate vicinity only to see more of these beings. One, a feline of exotic origin, stood close by, while a crowd of even more varying species was not too far off either.

This was a starship as he had come to accept, but it was just as unfamiliar as the creatures that inhabited it. The layout was strange and utterly foreign, yet at the same time... familiar in a way.

It did not take the guardian long to realize that something was wrong, and as he looked back to the object he had been released from, his sword clattered to the ground, released by numbed fingers.

It had been neither rubble nor debris that confined him… but a stasis pod. He and the speaker had spoken on the topic in detail many times over the waning years of the second heavenly war and he had even been a part of their initial development. Only a handful had been created before the science behind their manufacture had been lost to the dark.

Pieces to a puzzle he did not wish to solve slowly interlocked with one another despite his reluctance.

If he had been inside such a device….

He trembled at the implications. An unfamiliar starship crewed by a race of creatures never before seen in the traveler's light,

This could not be…

The guardian stumbled away from the furred alien before him, the animalian biped put to the back of his thoughts as he returned to the pod that had been his prison for an amount of time he had yet to discover. With great trepidation, he ran a shaking palm over the interface, bringing up a display with a time stamp.

 _ **Stasis initiated: 4578 Galactic Standard**_

 _ **Stasis Deactivated: 5*7** Galactic Standard**_

 _ **Warning! Insufficient data for accurate extrapolation!**_

 _ **Projected time in stasis: 50,207 years, 8 months, 2 weeks, 5 days, 6 hours, and 15 minutes**_

* * *

Fox was startled when the sword suddenly disappeared from its threatening positon and was instead left to carelessly drop to the floor. Rubbing his throat, the vulpine watched the alien step away and approach the pod, clearly distraught by some cataclysmic revelation. Fox did not think hard to figure out what might be cause for its distress.

With a wave of its hand, a haptic interface materialized above the open container and a sheet of information in forerunner glyphs popped into existence.

Whatever information on display had a clear effect on the alien. Flinching as if struck, it took a step backwards, perhaps not quite believing how long it had been asleep.

Fox found himself feeling pity for the forerunner. Whether or not it had intentionally been put inside the pod, it was mostly certainly finding itself out of place and time.

With bravery he did not feel, Fox once more moved towards the alien. "I'm sorry, but you've been sleeping for… a very long time." He didn't know if it could understand him, and he knew that he could not begin to understand himself what it was going though in that moment, but he could at least make the effort to offer some kind of condolence.

* * *

The guardian was numb, emotionless.

Though he had grown used to time and its effect, he could hardly comprehend what the pod was telling him.

If its estimation was correct, he had been in stasis for more than 50,000 years. Yet as hard as he tried, the moments leading up to his stasis could not be accessed. He could not remember them. Last thing he could remember was the tower… burning.

His artificial companion was nowhere to be found. He looked to the pod once more and gave it another more detailed search. Within he was partially relieved to see his rifle, which he quickly mag-locked to his spine, but there was no sign of the shard of the Traveler's light.

Ghost… was gone.

This realization struck the guardian on a profound, near spiritual level. Ghost had been at his side since the day he had become a guardian, for two thousand years they had known each other, endured through hardships unending. Not once in that time had the machine insisted on a name other than the one the Traveler gave him. He had been dedicated to serving the light, and at being his closest friend.

The guardian felt hollow without the little machine, as if a part of his soul had faded with its disappearance. Without Ghost's guidance, he was truly lost.

He heard the alien's voice once more from behind him. With Ghost, he would have been able to access his past memory so he could effectively converse with the creature, but as his companion was gone, he would have to find a way for himself.

Aiming his concentration inward, he searched for the memories of his past. He knew not how it was possible or why it was that these beings spoke the dead language golden age scholars had called English, but he considered it an unexpected blessing as it would allow him the ability to communicate, and he had a great many questions to ask them.

A particular memory surfaced from long ago, back when he had still been considered human. For a brief moment the outside world faded away as the voices of someone long dead filled his head.

" _Treat the metal with respect. Don't force it to change. Instead guide it along the path it chooses to take. Remember, you are its teacher, not its master."_

" _Good… just like that."_

" _Excellent work son."_

The memory faded as quickly as it had appeared, lost once more in the endless depths of his mind.

But… it was enough.

* * *

The Forerunner turned to face him, and he wished he had bothered to freshen up on the first contact manual. Though he had a feeling it would have not been enough to prepare him for this.

The vulpine's eyes tracked the being's movements as it raised its hands, realizing that it intended to remove its helmet. Curious as to what the precursor race looked like, Fox watched in fascination as it unlocked the seal around its neck and slowly pulled its helm away.

As he first laid sight upon the ancient alien's features, Fox was actually startled by what he saw, or rather by how familiar it was. The Forerunner looked much like an asari, though to him it had a distinctly masculine aura surrounding its coarse visage. Wanting to put a gender to the creature, and after taking a few seconds to get a detailed look at it, he decided that it must be a male. Where asari had blue or purples scales, the forerunner had smooth skin with a somewhat tan complexion. As an alternative to the tentacles associated with the asari species, he had a short ruff of blonde fur on his scalp that was reflected on his chin and cheeks.

However, it was the forerunner's piercing gaze that truly struck him speechless.

Unlike any eye color Fox had seen before, the male's irises glowed softly with the hue of molten gold, and blatant confusion.

" _What… are… you?"_

That voice, it was haunting, each word drawn out by lips that had not moved in eons. As dry as a desert and ancient as time itself, yet at the same time warm… and kind. Fox felt no animosity from this male, merely curiosity.

The vulpine was surprised to hear recognizable words filter out of the alien's mouth, but considered that finding an effective means of communication would not be beyond a race as advanced as the Forerunners.

"My name is Fox, and well…. I'm a fox." The vulpine winced at how stupid he sounded, even to his own ears.

 _Wow, you're doing a great job me. The first person to speak with a forerunner and you made yourself sound like an idiot._

" _Yes… I know that."_ The ancient alien rumbled softly, his golden gaze becoming more direct. _"What… are… you?"_

Fox was puzzled by the cryptic nature of the question. "I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean." He reluctantly confessed.

The Forerunner took a step towards him and Fox resisted the urge to take one back, instead letting the alien study him with the most intense stare Fox had ever experienced. Fox felt as if the olden creature was gazing into his soul.

It was… unnerving.

" _The light… I sense it within you. Yet it is… faint… lost."_ The alien appeared troubled, his lips twisting into a contemplative grimace as he scanned the entirety of the deck and the growing crowd surrounding them. _"You know_ _ **what**_ _I am. However… you know not_ _ **who**_ _I am."_

Again with the enigmatic musings, while without a doubt one of the more interesting dialogues in his life, Fox was beginning to come to the conclusion that this was so far above his paygrade that every second burned was more than he made in a year.

The vulpine looked to Miyu quickly, sharing an unconscious agreement that she should go get the captain.

In that moment, the forerunner took another glance at the machine that had imprisoned him for more than fifty-thousand years, coming to a realization in that brief instance of clarity. _"I am the only one… the last."_


	3. Chapter 3

Adrift in Space and Time

He was alone… the last that remained of the Traveler's warriors and his people.

The guardian knew this to be true, in his heart if not his mind. They knew of his kind yet knew not of them.

He could see it in their eyes, the abject wonder

The fear…

But the technology, there was recognition in their eyes as they looked upon it. They have seen examples of human engineering, but not humans. They knew of his race, but not of his people. He could only think of one reason that could be true. Humanity would never leave their achievements behind, not after they had strived so hard to attain them.

His society was gone, and they had left their wonders.

His memory was clouded in darkness; any recollection beyond the events leading up to the final attack on the gates was beyond his perception. He could still feel the wound in his side where he had been struck by a god. His armor had been repaired thanks to the enhancements bequeathed upon him by the Traveler, but his flesh had yet to benefit from the light's rejuvenating powers. Whereas most injuries would quickly heal, those inflicted by the strongest creatures of the dark always took longer to mend, and were not without their scars. Though he had suffered death more then once, and had returned from the threshold time and time again, most wounds did not leave marks behind. However, those inflicted by the purest manifestations of darkness always left some form of disfigurement on his flesh.

The reason was a mystery.

Perhaps there was some connection between the two asymmetric powers, and the repercussions that occurred when they inevitably clashed.

Whatever it was didn't matter now.

The guardian turned to the fox so cleverly named after his own species, studying the alien creature with an even more curious stare, looking for any excuse to not dwell on the ramifications of his realizations.

His initial surprise at the vulpine's appearance had not been the only thing to stay his blade.

What had caught him most off-guard was the light he could sense within the relatively smaller individual, however insignificant it may be. A human child possessed more light in their soul then this vulpine, and by rights such a creature should not have the Traveler's gift within its heart. Yet it was there regardless, a flickering candle lost in the abyss.

And the fox was not alone.

They all carried some infinitesimal connection to humanity's protector. He looked about the room and could sense it within all those present. The light was here, but was only a shadow of what it should be.

Though they all possessed some fragment of his god's gift, the vulpine burned brightest amongst them. It was intriguing, but not enough to remain at the top of his list of importance for more than the handful of seconds it took to catalogue that information for a time when he could afford to ponder what that might entail.

The chamber of steel and metal had been silent since he last opened his mouth in utterance of the one truth he had come to recognize. It was clear neither he nor they knew how to take this puzzling development. Indeed the guardian was still coming to grips with the understanding that he was the last of his kind, and had no idea where he was other than the knowledge that he was in a ship that resided at some point in space, in the custody of an alien race that was both familiar and unexpected.

He could have armed himself, having left his sword on the deck since he so carelessly let it slip through his fingers, but he felt no danger from these animalistic aliens. He doubted a creature of any kind that harbored the Traveler's guiding light was cause for concern.

Besides, he still had his rifle slung upon his back. If Ghost had been with him, he would have had access to the entirety of his arsenal, a host of lethal weapons, some of exotic origin, and others molded into legend by their wielder. The pang of loneliness that arose from remembering that painful detail was brief, unpleasant, and quickly buried away.

For the moment he decided to refrain from any action that could be interpreted as antagonistic. The Guardian had no quarrel with these aliens and possessed no desire to fight those obviously not under the influence of the dark.

He looked to the vulpine, deliberating internally on the merits of reinitiating their dialogue when he heard footsteps from the corridor across the expanse, his enhanced sensory abilities able to discern this fact even through a bulkhead of steel. It was a singular individual he heard, their gait suitably calm and collected that he had to assume it to be either a creature of high personage within the alien's ranks, or someone very confident with their position in life.

The far door opened with the faint hiss of pneumatic pumps, revealing what had to be the captain of this ship if the somewhat familiar ranking paraphernalia pinned to the hare's chest was to be believed. But what more gave his status away then the unusual markings on his suit, was the clear and direct gaze that was leveraged upon him. The guardian found himself intrigued by this one. Not many in his life had the strength of will to match his scrutiny. Even the foulest minions of the dark averted their eyes upon meeting his.

Although, it could merely be attributed to the fact the hare knew not who he was, had no reason other than the unknown to be wary him.

Curious, the guardian shifted his body to face the newcomer, ensuring that the rabbit would recognize that he had his attention.

Seeing his superior, the vulpine quickly moved to converse with him, the feline that had been standing beside him followed shortly after.

The Guardian did not bother to intrude upon the dialogue, confident in the knowledge that he would be able to react suitably should the situation rapidly deteriorate, and was overall unconcerned with what they might be discussing. While undoubtedly pertaining to him, there was naught he could do about it.

Instead he waited till they had finished and the captain approached, his eyes a soft steel grey, but no less commanding as he focused them upon the ancient soldier.

"You… are a Forerunner yes?" The hare inquired, rather bluntly if the guardian was to admit.

" _That is what you may call my people, but we went by a humbler title. To us, we were all humans. Humanity as a whole you could have called us."_ The guardian answered with a curt duck of his head in greeting, ensuring he remained somewhat polite to his new hosts. _"To call us Forerunners would be to insinuate that we were the first. This is an incorrect assumption."_

The Captain nodded at that, easily finding the logic in his answer. It was clear there was more he wished to ask on the subject, a great deal so. But it was even more apparent that such questions could wait till a later more opportune time.

"You must feel quite disorientated right now. I assure you that you have my deepest sympathies for your plight. I cannot begin to imagine what it must be like for you. And though it may be crass of me to push such considerations to the side, there are more immediate things that I think we both agree must come to the fore."

What the rabbit spoke was true. The Guardian was sure they had many questions to ask, as did he, yet there was a time and place for such. For now, he would settle for those of immediate use. Questions such as, where was he? Who are they? And what happens now?

Unsurprisingly, he had never found himself in a position where he was the last human in a universe he most likely would not understand. And he could confidently say no one had either. For the moment, he would be glad to simply have those three questions answered and dealt with.

The Guardian could have allowed himself to be crushed under the weight of his situation, could have surrendered to despair and shock. After all he had just learned that everyone he had ever known was most likely if not certainly long dead and that the culmination of all humanity's achievements were nothing but ancient history to these creatures, the stepping stones to their own rise to power. But he would not allow himself to falter. He was a guardian and a lord of iron. He had challenged the physical manifestations of both gods and demons. And when he had been struck down, he had returned, stronger than before and empowered by the traveler's light.

He was a guardian… one of the original light augmented soldiers that had served under the broken form of their god.

As such, he had lived for several thousand years, and had endured more than his fair share of circumstances beyond belief, insidious hive rituals and vex temporal anomalies so incomprehensible that even those of the strongest wills could succumb to madness. He had watched the veil of reality itself, tear at the behest of Vex machinations and battled hive sorcerers whose capacity for cruelty was only matched by their unbelievable power.

This was a unique state of affairs, to be sure, and perhaps even the most potentially cataclysmic, but not something he could not overcome.

"If you would come with me, we could see about handling some of the more pivotal issues." The rabbit gestured to the door he had arrived from, no doubt intending to take him to a more secluded location where the already extensive collateral damage could be mitigated.

It reminded the guardian of an archaic, but no less useful euphemism.

 _Loose lips sink ships._

* * *

Fox was not sure what to think as Peppy winded down from his long speech on the current state of the galaxy, a rather boring lecture he already knew by heart, or at least it would have been tedious in any other circumstance. The vulpine had been fidgeting in his seat throughout the entire duration, still unused to the ovular chairs ringing the rather ostentatious table of filigreed steel and haptic interfaces. The Great Fox was still fresh out of space dock, so some of the rooms were relatively new to him. He hadn't really had reason to come down to this part of the ship as Eden Prime had been their first, albeit unpleasant, operation.

The dreadnaught-cruiser hybrid was a unique vessel, sporting the size and weaponry of a battlecruiser, but possessing the speed and maneuverability of a frigate, all of this supplemented with a hyper advanced stealth system. All in all, it was the prototype for a new line of lylatian fleet support craft.

Though it was prohibitively expensive during construction and was likely to lose some of its more prominent features in the production models.

Yet the ship was not what put doubt into his mind in the moment he made himself comfortable, but rather the towering individual sitting across from him.

This Forerunner, this… human, had listened to Peppy's speech with silent and attentive intensity. He had not spoken a word since the hare instigated the ad-hoc debrief; his expression more schooled then even an asari matriarch and twice as unreadable as a starship's bulkhead. This male was unlike anyone Fox had ever encountered before, which in hindsight was not all that surprising given the situation.

The vulpine had yet to come to terms with the fact he was sitting across from what was quite literally a living legend, someone he had often wondered what it would be like to meet. And now given the opportunity, he realized he didn't even know the first thing to say.

So he remained mute, casting a curious glance over to Miyu and Bill.

The feline had followed them to the briefing room, where Bill was quick to arrive once he heard the news that was no doubt circulating the ship at breakneck pace. The canine had only briefly startled upon seeing the alien, but was quick to recover as he had taken his seat.

He had yet to speak with the dog about this most recent development, and in fact had not seen him since he woke up. Thankfully, Bill looked no worse for wear after that last mission, something Fox was glad for as that was one small bit of good news from their most recent excursion.

"Now that I have talked your ear off, I can go on to say that I'm not entirely sure what to do now." Peppy confessed with a rather apologetic grin as he returned his gaze to the human sitting at the table. "As you could imagine there are no precedents for this moment and the fact you seem to understand out language is a particularly fortunate as we have no linguistic experts onboard. This is after all a military starship. That aside, I suppose I should welcome you to the modern galaxy."

As every eye had been firmly centered on the ancient alien already, their stares only deepened as it was clear he had been prompted to speak.

Fox once more took in the human's appearance, thickly armored gauntlets lying upon the tabletop beside his plumed helmet, expression as emotive as a stone wall, yet no less friendly for it. The vulpine was surprised to feel a continued sense of peace and cordiality from the strange alien. Though his situation was beyond natural, literally out of place and time, he still persisted to carry that calm, patient exterior that reminded Fox of someone that had simply seen all there was to see. It was… fascinating.

In answer to Peppy's declaration of greeting, the olden male inclined his head in gratitude, his soothing response arriving in a smooth baritone.

" _I thank you for the kindness in which you have treated me. It has been a long time since I last spoke to another race that bore no ill intent."_ The human lifted a gauntlet to gesture purposefully at the galactic map that Peppy had keyed into the table's interface at the onset of this discussion _. "I see that the galaxy has indeed changed much since I was last awake, and I must also admit, these races you speak of, I have not heard of their like before."_

His armored hand shifted in its direction, surprising Fox once it had landed upon him. _"However, most curiously, the likes of your own species and those within this room I have seen before, though they were admittedly in a far more primitive state. I can only extrapolate that you have evolved in the 50,000 years or so since my… entombment."_

Fox was not sure how to respond to that, or if there was even a way to. This human had seen their ancestors, had presumably interacted with them in some form. The implications behind that were just… astonishing.

"You know… you're taking all of this rather well." Miyu observed with a curious tilt of her muzzle. She imagined that if she had been in the same situation, she would not have endured this with nearly as much nonchalance as this human. In fact, he seemed more curious than alarmed, at least now that some time had passed since his awakening.

" _What you speak is true. But I have lived for a long time, and once you have lived as long as I have it… well it puts things into perspective you might say."_

"You don't look all that old." Bill spoke up, eyeing the human's features inquisitively. While unalike in appearance to a lylatian or even an asari, neither he nor anyone else could see any sort of weathering on the human's face to indicate advanced age.

As fox might attest to, he most certainly did not suffer from old age's decrepitude.

" _Mayhaps not outwardly, but I have lived for many a long year. And in those years I have seen a great deal many things that might make one question reality. While my current situation is certainly far surpassing that of any previous, I will not dwell upon the past. To do so would be… unpleasant."_ The human admitted with what was the first grim expression Fox had seen him make.

"What will you do now?" Captain Hare inquired. He had no desire to seek to imprison the possibly last remaining member of their precursor civilization, nor did he feel such an extreme measure necessary. So far the human had made zero indication that he was prone to violence or hostility other than what could be brushed off by the nature of his sudden and traumatic drop out of stasis. In fact he was nearly amiable to a fault. Peppy did not have any wish to withhold the human from the galaxy. He had no right to do that. "I imagine there are quite a few scientist and scholars out there that would sell their kidney just to spend a minute with you."

The human chuckled at that, his surprisingly jovial outburst filling the briefing room with a sound that could very nearly be called musical. _"Such individuals would be sorely disappointed once they met me. I am more warrior then scholar."_ His smiling visage soon darkened. _"However there were a few of my brethren that would have been delighted at the opportunity."_ He could count on a hand just by reflex the number of warlocks that would have loved such an opportunity.

Fox decided that perhaps now was the time to ask the question he knew everyone in the room as dying to ask.

"What happened to them? Your people have left relics behind, but precious little else."

The human looked uncomfortable as he answered, scratching the back of his gauntlet with an idle digit. _"I am… uncertain. My memory is not what it used to be. Since awakening, recent events before my slumber are… shrouded."_

There was partial truth to his statement. The exact nature and cause of humanity's disappearance was unknown to him, though it was not difficult to postulate the most logical explanation. But such was a scenario he desperately hoped beyond hope was false, and neither did he have any desire to relay this information. He would not start his days here as a mad prophet, proclaiming the end of modern civilization, at least not without proof. For now he would wait until further data could be extrapolated. There was no need to unnecessarily concern the modern denizens of this galactic evolution. It was not as if anything he would say had basis anyways, and would in all actuality, probably be brushed off as the raving of an archaic individual. He had too much experience in life to think anything otherwise. After all, he had seen examples of such situations himself.

"You need not tell us now." Peppy offered with a small smile. "We understand that some things may be… difficult for you to speak of.

The relief on the human's expression was quite apparent as he smiled softly. _"Thank you Captain, perhaps another time."_

"So… what _will_ you do now?" Miyu returned to a previous point in their conversation.

" _I do not know truth be told. Much of what I valued is no longer present in this world, nor do I think I could explain in a means you could comprehend on what remains. You say that modern civilization has found what you call the Citadel? Perhaps I would like to see it."_

It had been a very long time since the guardian last set eyes upon the mightiest construction humanity had ever set upon, what was to be center of their growing golden age empire. Though they called it something else, he could not think of any other piece of human ingenuity to be what they had spoken of, and yet such a construct had not been lasting, soon consumed in shadow in the declining years of the second war of heaven. He had been one of the last guardians to retreat from the fallen station, leaving it in the fetid claws of the wretched hive, but not after ensuring they would pay a heavy price for their victory.

One of the more burning questions he wished answered, was what happened to the enemy? Where were the forces of darkness? He had once grown accustomed to the nearly ever-present sensation of the dark; that a lack of its presence was near deafening. The current galaxy, or at least within his range of sense, was near devoid of darkness, harkening back to the first days of the second golden age, back when they had truly started to believe in their success.

"Of course, we should be arriving within a few hours, and I am sure the council will want to meet you." Peppy informed him.

Ah… the council, what amounted for a government in this new galactic iteration. Quite a unique concept as humanity, being essentially isolated in its plight, had always been guided by both The Speaker and The Traveler. Yes, he would indeed like to see what these species had accomplished with the foundational groundwork left by his race. Perhaps the sight of it would give further meaning to the sacrifices made by those he unwittingly left behind.

" _I would like that very much, and perhaps if you would be so gracious, I would also wish to inquire about one of these codices you talked of. There is more detail therewith than spoken word I believe. And there is much I most undoubtedly must read upon."_ Such would be twofold purpose, occupying his time till they arrived and imparting some much needed knowledge on the universe at large. He had been away for a long time, and had missed much. Some study would do well to abate the demons of the past.

"I can certainly grant that request… I'm afraid you have yet to divulge your name…?" Peppy trawled to a stop.

The guardian took a moment longer than usual to respond.

" _Uther… t'was a title I had once been known by. I imagine it should suit me fine here."_ He decided. It had been some years since he bothered with a name, such conventions lost meaning in the many years he had been alive. The simple designation of guardian had been more than sufficient. He had shuffled though so many titles that they all eventually stagnated and lost any inherent significance. But in this new galaxy he suspected a name would be necessary if he were to form any lasting bonds. Things he imagined he would need if he wished to see what had become of the past and uncover the fate of his people.

 _This will take some getting used to._

* * *

Fox shuffled in his boots at the door to the airlock, casting regular glances across his team to the hulking alien standing beside them, his encompassing casing of silver and obsidian shinning bright underneath the lights of the ship, more heavily armored than even the toughest krogan and adorned in mysterious weaponry. In front of the group, Peppy led the way, intending to be the voice for their party once they disembarked.

Not minutes ago they had docked with the citadel and he had been sent to retrieve the human who had been spending the hours between in the hanger, where he had expended his time reading from the omni-tool offered to him by the captain, and fiddling with the pod he had awoken from. Though it seemed he had only good intentions thus far, he remained under guard nonetheless in that time, the squad of sentries having had difficulty deciding on whether they feared or were curious of one who had once been called forerunner. It seemed however, that they were more inclined to the former as they were certain to keep their distance from the human while he toiled.

Fox was not sure what Uther - as he now had been named - sought to accomplish with his efforts, but did not place much consideration into something he decided he would not understand. Instead he had merely informed the human of their arrival and escorted him throughout the ship to the airlock.

They had exchanged a few words, nothing more than mindless pleasantries as anything more invasive might be considered in ill taste and the human had most of his inane questions answered by the codex now in his possession.

The vulpine admired the human, impressed by both his resilience at such a taxing situation and the kindness with which he spoke. His manner of speech was odd, seemingly antiquated and full of polite etiquette. Regardless, Fox found himself enjoying the odd male's company. He was unique for more than his appearance and lineage. The male himself was a curious individual.

No doubt he would become more than just an idle curio once he made galactic headlines, with the possibility to shake the very foundations of interstellar society, which allowed Fox to truly appreciate how surreal their predicament was. Standing less than two meters from him was an ancient individual from more than 50,000 years in the past, and they had just exchanged a rather banal conversation of the like one might share with a passerby.

This very moment he should have been gaping in awe, a thousand questions waiting to part from his mouth… and yet that was near the last thing on his mind. There was just so much that needed said in such a small window that he simply didn't have the time. Any information pertaining to their new guest was strictly regulated already by the captain in anticipation for the eventual fallout with the news networks.

As such in this moment, only those aboard the Great Fox, and just recently the council through a secure transmission, were informed of the situation regarding the forerunner relic and what had once been its contents. To say that the three heads of galactic politics were eager to meet a member of their precursors was a hilarious understatement.

The only thing Fox hoped from this, would be that with all this excitement the rather unfortunate events on Eden Prime might be somewhat glossed over, or rather his perceived liability. He had little yearning to be held responsible for actions beyond his control.

The hiss of the airlock's magnetic release brought Fox from his reverie and the vulpine lifted his gaze to watch the cumbersome airtight partitions peel apart, snatching one last peek at the human out of the corner of his eye. It would be difficult for Uther to _not_ attract attention. What his armor already did not do to set him apart from anyone else, his titanic stature and hulking figure ensured it would be impossible for him to go unnoticed or ignored.

Questions were inevitable, despite the fact his alien visage was concealed behind the sterling silver and obsidian ornamented great helm of antiquated design. He was far too large and muscled to be taken as any species other than a krogan, and the distinct lack of a humped back eliminated that possibility at the start.

Fox could see a great many problems already, even as they stepped out of the docking tube and entered the main processing courtyard. Thankfully as they were a military vessel and had the captain with them, they were afforded lenience from the usual procedures, waived in after only a cursory examination from the pair of guards by the door. Once on the other side, they found themselves in the entrance to C-sec, the citadel's main security element. More a paramilitary force then your usual run-of-the-mill constabularies, they were prepared to respond to nearly any threat imaginable, which was quite necessary given the size of the space station and its importance to the galactic community as a whole.

Various officers of numerous species were spread out across the chambers of silvery walls and bulletproof window panes, but were predominantly of turian and lylatian allegiance. Similar in mind to the turians and their ethos for public service, the species of Lylat had quite easily stepped into peace keeping rolls within the galactic community, something that admittedly may have been partly responsible for their near effortless integration. The council had every reason to welcome the large fleets and protectively minded inhabitants of the Lylat system. Their forces both helped ensure citadel authority and offered a safer life for every species and their colonies.

It was these individuals that stared holes into the towering alien that followed after Fox and their small group. The human's massive boots echoed throughout the cavernous building, the weight behind each footstep announcing his presence to all those within earshot.

Yet perhaps what truly made the security officials keep their gaze on the armored warrior was the presence of a two meter hunk of steel sheathed upon the human's back, and the fact it seemed to possess a faint molten glow.

Fox thought that strange. Uther was clearly equipped with a rifle as well, quite a large one at that, but it was the blade that brought him the looks. Though he supposed he should not be startled by that. Blades were not all that common unless you happened to be a krogan. Then they were apparently a necessity.

The vulpine watched curiously as one of the turian officers stepped away from his cohorts and warily approached them. The avian-like alien shifted his mandibles, eyes widening slightly as they traveled up and up the human's armored frame, close proximity imparting upon him the true size of the individual standing before him, someone who could look the tallest krogan dead in the eye.

"Uh… Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave your… sword, with C-Sec. Exotic weapons are not allowed in the wards or presidium levels without a Class-A armament license."

Fox felt nervous in the minute of silence that persisted after that declaration, a sentiment that was easily shared amongst the small group and C-Sec officer equally. The vulpine prayed that the human would not make a seen.

Uther's arms shifted into motion, startling the turian police officer but for only a moment before his gauntlets reached behind his back, quickly disengaging the magnetic coils that kept his blade secure.

" _It shall be as you say, peacekeeper. I shall leave my blade in thine care."_ The large human responded with soft humility, retrieving his blade and offering it to the speechless turian with deferential care.

With an uncertain nod, the alien grabbed hold of the blade, his clawed digits wrapping firmly around the hilt and the midpoint of the shallow groove etched into its length. Visibly struggling with the titanic sword the moment Uther released it, the C-Sec officer was clearly surprised at the unexpected weight, his voice retuning in a thin grunt. "Thank you for your cooperation, Sir. Once you are ready to… depart the station you can retrieve your weapon… from customs."

With those final words, Fox and the rest of their party watched with thinly veiled amusement as the turian fought with the blade in his claws as he set off to catalogue what was undoubtedly one of the most unique confiscations of his career.

" _This… Omni-tool, it is a most useful implement."_ The human mused as he looked down upon his bracer to the orange glowing device located upon it. Shortly before departing the ship he had integrated the peculiar device into his armor systems, surprised at how easily his suit's software had accepted the alien programs. _"In moments that alien's tongue was as clear as if I had spoken it since the day I had been born."_

Uther was utterly fascinated by this technology, something not even the height of the golden age had achieved. Then again, there was not much reason to understand the many languages of their foes, and no doubt they were far more complex in design.

"Did your people not have similar tools?" Miyu wondered with a curious flick of her ear as they resumed their journey, stepping out of the C-Sec academy and into the wards.

" _No. We had no need for things such as this."_ It was long known that communication would not bring peace with the forces arrayed against them and all humans were unified under the Travelers's guidance, a universal language binding them in their accord. Turning his eyes away from the object on his arm he studied a sight that was nearly familiar to him but not inherently so.

Not much had changed of the Citadel from what he remembered, a forest of towers both in front and above his gaze, wrapped around the circular arms of the monolithic space station. The artificial day/night cycle saw the quasi sun at its zenith, or midday he supposed it was. Far off in the distance a flurry of shuttles zoomed across the golden sky like minute motes of light in the afternoon haze, their metallic sheen reflected in the mirrored windows of clustered habitation pylons.

It was logical to assume that with a prefabricated construct like the Citadel, that not much would need to be altered to suit the needs of anyone that wished to utilize it for their own needs. Even the chamber for Citadel Security had been a place of analogous utility back when humanity still possessed it.

The sight itself was… strange. For even half a moment, he expected to see one of his own kind in the bustling crowds, perhaps a guardian wandering the streets before heading off on patrol or a family out for a day at the park. Such was still here, but not what it once had been. Blue aliens holding a striking similarity to mankind strode through causeways of pale white steel as they intermingled with the abundance of other species filling the paths, peacekeepers bedecked in blue armor dotted the living landscape, overseeing their wards.

It would never again be what humanity had made it.

Nevertheless… Uther found solace in such visions of peace. He knew not how nor why, but the darkness was gone, banished by means beyond his understanding. He could feel but the barest traces of the enemy of light, a faint scratching at the back of his awareness, faint enough to be ignored. Hopefully it would never return to prominence, would never again threaten the innocent.

"Are you alright, Uther?"

The guardian's musing was averted by the now familiar voice of Fox, the one most attuned to the power of his fallen god amidst those he had come to consort with, and the human turned to answer. " _I shall endure. Though I should not, I remain wondrous all the same at the achievements made by yours and the other peoples of this new galaxy. You have come close to the path my own people trod."_

Fox was not sure why, but he found himself smiling at the unintended praise, still carrying the grin several minutes later, even as they arrived at the Lylatian Embassy. Councilor Daala had already been made aware of the situation, and was in fact charged with organizing the upcoming meeting with the council. This responsibility should have been considered an honor, a great leap of faith and trust for the newest additions to the galaxy at large, but such came as a double edged sword as other races would hold the continued rise of Lylat in contempt.

It was not long as they were quickly screened by the guards and escorted through the halls bustling with aides and representatives, straight to the door of Councilor Daala herself. Peppy took one last look at the small group in front of him before entering with them in tow.

The Councilor's office was about what one would expect of an individual in such a position, designed to provide a tasteful yet spacious floorplan and strategically placed items and lights that seemed to subtly imply that the person who owned this room was very influential. Though oddly enough, the workspace was inhabited by a rather humble and plain desk of seamless steel, with photos of those that were in all likelihood family or close associates.

The woman herself was seated behind her desk, her bright yellow fur dappled with brownish markings from what could be seen past the shiny laminate of her apparel. Such an animal was known to Uther, a feline that had once roamed the plains of the African continent, what was so many years ago. T'was a strange sight, seeing so many familiar species of terran species now given prominence in this new world order.

At their arrival, the female was quick to excuse herself from her seat and cross the lengthy expanse of her office, a small and somewhat nervous grin pulling at her lips, which could easily be attributed to the circumstances arrayed around this meeting. Although the guardian stood at the rear of the party, that did little to prevent the woman from singling him out and making her way towards him. The others were quick to disperse and let her through as she approached.

Uther regarded the short statured feline as she halted a few feet from him and tilted her muzzle backward in an effort to establish eye contact through his helm. Seeing as she was a person of high esteem in this galaxy, he removed that piece of armor so that they might speak face to face.

"You know… I spent the last three hours preparing a speech for just this moment. And now that you're here, that I see you, the words seem to have just eluded me." The female cheetah confessed with an uneasy chuckle as she studied a unique set of alien features, for all appearances looking baffled beyond words.

" _You need not worry for appearances or lavish speeches on my behalf, Councilor. Such things were never of any interest to me. A simple greeting and firm handshake should more than suffice."_ He replied with an outstretched gauntlet.

The feline stared at the proffered limb for only a moment before accepting the gesture with a beaming smile, her comparatively miniature paw eclipsed by his massive, plated digits. "Thank you. It is not often I don't have to worry about the words I say. Still I must inform you that it is an absolute honor to be speaking with you, a living member of our predecessors. I, and the galaxy I imagine, have a great deal many questions for you…."

" _You may call me Uther."_ He replied in answer to the unspoken question.

"Then it is a pleasure to meet you, Uther. And though I wish we had more time for niceties, the council is perhaps even more eager than myself to meet you, which in retrospect I find highly amusing. They requested that I bring you to the council chamber the moment you arrived. And they will want Mccloud and his team as well to discuss the events of the mission that… unearthed you." She looked back to the vulpine and his two friends briefly before returning her eyes upon him with the most diplomatic of smiles.

"I dislike having to ask, but would you please put your helmet back on till we reach the presidium? That should help keep the bulk of the crowds away… for the most part. They shut down the entire tower in anticipation for your arrival so I can only assume they wish to keep this under wraps for now."

" _You need but request and I shall abide."_ The human declared with a humble bow as he donned his helmet once more with elegance and grace expected of an action that had been performed times unending.

"Thank you." The cheetah expressed her gratitude with rose tinted cheeks and a light, airy chuckle. "If you would all follow me I we can get started on what shall undoubtedly be a day that will not be so easily forgotten."

With little else to be said, the councilor ushered the small party out of her office and set them on the path to the tower. Not soon after she began to speak once more, and the guardian listened in as they traveled the beatific paths of planed steel and cleverly placed horticulture, his eyes roving to ingest the unsettlingly familiar sights and sounds.

"Captain, it has been some time since last we spoke… the Benning Crisis if I'm not mistaken." The councilor began as she turned to the hare with a grin.

"Ah Benning yes… has it really been that long?" Peppy asked as he turned to address the councilor.

"Four years as of last month if I'm not mistaken. And it looks like you've kept busy since." She declared with an amused smile. "Somehow I'm not surprised you had something to do with all this."

"Is that because of Saren's suspected involvement?"

"Not quite, though I am aware that you two have somewhat of a… history." She answered tactfully.

"Yes… one could certainly call it that." Peppy agreed somewhat distantly as Fox looked to his captain with unspoken curiosity.

This stroked the guardian's interest. He had heard a little of this Saren individual in both the report concerning his retrieval, something that had been quite bizarre to read, and from the galactic codex. The turian was a council specter, a positon of some esteem and mystery from what the extranet described, what was perhaps this galactic iteration's strange attempt at a guardian.

The human warrior also found it disconcerting that such an individual might have some influence regarding his awakening, and even more concerning that it was possible the citadel agent was corrupt and responsible for the loss of life preceding this. That revelation would indirectly lay blame on his shoulders for the loss of life on the world he had been taken from.

Uther felt some guilt that those who suffered were directly or circuitously harmed because of his existence, that the attack on the lylatian colony had something to do with him, though what for was one of the greatest questions he wished answered.

It was all so strange to him. Never had the guardians had to worry about traitors or defectors in their ranks. Such was literally an impossibility and without precedent. But such was also a grim reminder of the years following the first collapse. There had been no guardians after the Traveler fell, just individuals given too much power and no wisdom to utilize it. In those days he had learned that humanity was in fact its own worst enemy, and they were capable of acts just as horrific and cruel as the darkness that had laid them low.

Not that he had been any better.

"Here we are… the Citadel Tower." Uther's fetters of past recollections sloughed away at the sound of the councilor's rather grandiose declaration and he lifted his helmed head to regard what was the heart of modern civilization as she gestured rather proudly at the sight with an upraised paw.

In a reoccurring theme he was starting to expect, not much had changed with the Tower of the Speaker, though unexpectedly it went by a different name. No longer did the Traveler's voice guide its flock amongst the stars, now it was home to the heads of a galaxy that had forgotten or never knew its teachings.

Uther was silent as they walked down paths and architecture he had personally witnessed his people build in what was perhaps the pinnacle of their civilization. Much of the technology and knowledge that had been put into the citadel had been lost after its fall, as had a great deal of humanity's strength.

He had borne witness to the destruction of their fleets during the siege of Elysium, what these people now called the citadel. He had watched as millions were slain in their failed efforts to retain the newest seat of their power, the blood of armies washing the once pristine streets of pale alloy a deep crimson. Not even the combined might of the Iron Lords had been enough to hold the line, their valor overrun by relentless hordes of the darkness' most vile creations.

Barely a handful of broken vessels had been able to escape through the jumpgate, leaving behind a hundred times their number as shattered wrecks in the void. The fall of Elysium had beckoned the end of humanity's interstellar empire, and introduced the centuries of bitter withdrawals that would become known as the fall to future desperate generations.

"What does it feel like… to be back?" The inquisitive voice of Fox emanated from beside him, reminding the human that his battles had been long in the past, undeniably lost to ancient antiquity.

Uther pondered at the vulpine's question for a few moments.

" _I shall tell you when I find out."_ He answered, the guardian's tone low and pensive.

Fox's curious gaze upon the human waivered only at the sounds of a verbal conflict ahead of them, two turians embroiled in a heated discussion.

"Saren's hiding something, give me more time… stall them." The turian in blue demanded.

"Stall the council?" The alien in red scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. Your investigation is over, Garrus." With a dismissive wave of his hand, the irritated turian turned away and set off in a direction that would take him away from his companion.

The other avian-like alien - who Uther recognized as a member of citadel security given his armor pattern - growled in vexation as he made an effort to leave, in doing so his roving eye found itself passing Fox, though not for long. In moments the turian seemed to recognize the vulpine and made his intent clear when he approached.

"Commander Mccloud?" The C-sec officer inquired in his strange, slightly harmonic voice.

At a nod from Fox, the turian continued as Peppy and the councilor only briefly acknowledged the conversation before moving to wait for them at the foot of the steps leading up to the amphitheater.

"Garrus Vakarian. I was the officer in charge of the C-sec investigation into Saren." Uther noted that this particular member of his species contained an admirable, albeit youthful attitude. But that did not interest him so much as the fact he carried a somewhat more potent sense of the Traveler's light. As the guardian had discerned previously, this individual's race and most others carried a more muted aura than that of the Lylat races he had originally encountered. The portent for this strange development was beyond him, however, he decided to make note of this particular character as he tuned back into Fox's conversation.

"So… what was that all about?" Fox gestured vaguely in the direction of the turian who had just stormed off.

"That was Executor Pallin, head of Citadel security and also… my boss. He'll be presenting my findings on Saren to the Council."

"Find anything worthwhile?" Fox inquired hopefully. However the negative shake of the turian's head was quick to dismiss his expectations.

"Saren is a specter, everything he does is classified. I couldn't get anything solid, but I just know he's up to something. What's it you lylatians like to say? I feel it in my gut?"

Uther smiled faintly at that, finding it strange that some euphemisms managed to survive the ages.

"Look…" Garrus began, seeming for a moment to be moderately uncomfortable. 'I know you are heading up there to speak with the Council. So I feel it would be fair to warn you that they won't like to hear anything you have to say about Saren. He's their best agent, and I know they won't stand to hear such accusations without good evidence. I guess what I'm trying to say is… good luck Mccloud."

Fox nodded grimly. The vulpine had come to suspect this as well, but felt that he had to at least try if for no other reason than he could stand up for his principles.

"Thanks Vakarian."

With a wave farewell, the turian moved down the path they had come from while Fox pushed ahead with his group, turning to Uther curiously.

"So, ready to meet the Council?"

In response the human shrugged _. "I am curious to see what you have all done with what has been left for you."_ He hoped that the speakers for the entirety of galactic civilization would be just and sensible paragons of noble virtue. He had not had much chance to garner a more in depth study of galactic history, but the fact that civilization was still standing had to be a good thing.

The man followed Fox and his companions as they ascended the steps into what had once been the public forum, where the everyday citizen, and even other guardians with concerns could freely discuss them with the Speaker or on occasion, one of the Iron Lords. Uther recalled with some fond amusement, that he had often found himself on either side of the proceedings that had once been carried out here. Shaxx in particular had always been hesitant to be on this level of the tower. He had confided in Uther his concerns that he would be barraged with complaints on the difficulty of his wargames. And from what he remembered, that had been a very valid concern.

It was painful to evoke past memories, a bitter sweetness of reminiscence for the glory days of his people. Those days had been long ago, such moments of joy consumed by the darkness. Shaxx was dead, killed when overwhelmed by a cadre of elite Kabal centurions from the Sky Burner's Legion, his ghost executed alongside him. That had been moments after the wall had fallen to the enemy, the titan cut off from his brothers and surrounded. Uther had fought fiercely, tearing through hordes of psions and a company of phalanxes as he tried to force a path to his fellow guardian, an ultimately futile action as he had been forced to retreat or end up like his comrade.

Shaxx's death had been the first of the notable warriors of light since the siege's commencement, and had been a tragic blow to the defenders that they had never recovered from. But it was nothing new to Uther. Often times the man cursed the manacles of immortality. It was impossible to appreciate such a gift when all he could remember was death and suffering. His first life, that of when he still possessed his humanity, was all but lost to him, nothing but scattered thoughts vanished in the ages, as were the majority of his memories. But he could still recall the deaths of every guardian he had ever known.

Uther wished that The Traveler in his infinite wisdom had not sought to bestow upon him such a pointed memory. Ask him and he could recall the minute detail of every small skirmish, battle, and lengthy campaign he had ever fought. But make an inquiry of the lives of his fellow guardians, and one would be surprised to realize that he could recall virtually nothing. Idle conversation, stories amongst comrades, even the topic of love was beyond his grasp. He could not even remember if he had ever found one to consider so closely, what was perhaps the greatest tragedy yet to befall him.

However the guardian banished his morbid musings as they were in this moment unimportant. He was to meet the leaders of modern galactic society at the top of these steps, and he did not want the ill-fated events of his past to stain what was to be a momentous occasion for both himself and these civilizations.

* * *

 _This no doubt comes as a surprise to all considering it's been a long time since I touched this particular story. However as I am super close to finishing the next chapter for Legacy, though struck by a case of dreaded writer's block, I still felt the need to get something out. I was relieved when I shifted focus to this, that I found some manner of inspiration. considering I do not touch this piece all to often, reviews are especially appreciated, I welcome all reasonable advice for the direction of the plot and perhaps might even require the services of a few imaginative individuals in the future for short, one time characters to make an appearance, and perhaps one or two more permanent individuals depending on the their quality and make. As the mass Effect universe is quite large and a fascinating place to create. If I do have need for such characters' I'll be sure to let you all known for certain._

 _Till then, keep the faith!_


	4. Chapter 4

A World Not Like That Remembered

With hope burning brightly in his heart at what was for him a new start and perhaps a way to find purpose for his existence, Uther mounted the final steps and looked upon the parapets that had once housed the most noble of humanity's heroes, and nearly lost his footing as he gazed upon the incomprehensible changes wrought upon the tower.

What stood before him now were not the humble arches of silvered steel and modest sculptures, no longer did the halls echo with the pleasant chatter of individuals. Bold and egregious livery of gaudy gold ornamentation and towering plinths of marble jutted out from the environment like broken tusks. The unpretentious crowds he once witnessed here had vanished, replaced by lanky, garishly dressed politicians that bickered and scrabbled amongst each other in forcibly polite tones, as if they could not sound anything but starving hounds fighting over scraps.

This… this was not what humanity, the speaker… had intended. Where was the unity, the confederation of purpose for the betterment of all that flocked underneath the banner of civilization? Why did he see so many dissatisfied faces? Why could he sense the barely veiled animosity that so thickly layered the atmosphere?

Uther could feel the light fade within him at such an ignoble sight, the once proud vestments of man laid so low by egotism and misbegotten self-indulgence. This tower was never meant to be drabbed in such unnecessary baubles and opulence. They had defiled the memory of the Speaker and all the brave warriors that had died to protect the innocent from the ravenous clutch of the dark.

This… this was a mockery of everything he stood for,

For the first time in an age, Uther could feel his lips contort into an ugly snarl, his utter dissatisfaction concealed all but for the violent change in his body language. Fox, the vulpine being closest to him, was first to notice, turning to regard the towering guardian with concern and slight hesitation.

"Is… something wrong?"

Uther felt the rancorous, acidic and volatile nature of his outrage threaten to seep out from within the closely minded divider he had cultivated in his mind since his awakening. All of the resentment and anger he had contained inside him at every cruel turn of fate that saw fit to spite him, near close to bursting from his polite exterior.

Yet he refrained, the cool and calm essence of his personality quickly apprehending what would have been a breach of conduct unbecoming of a warrior of light. Fox and his companions did not deserve his acrimony. Perhaps no one person currently alive did. What had happened to the tower could have been effected thousands of years ago, the perpetrators of the defilement long since turned to dust. What he saw before him was in quintessence a failing of all sapient races. Those in power tended to bedeck themselves in their greed.

It was a problem, but one in which he had all the time bequeathed upon him in his immortality to fix. He vowed that no matter how long it would take, years, centuries, or eons, that he would see the Speaker's memory untarnished.

Sighing softly, the guardian shook his head and gestured for Fox and his compatriots to continue onwards towards the large circular dais that awaited them. _"All is well. Please… shall we continue?"_

Nodding, but in all appearance still concerned, Fox and the others quickly began to move once more.

It was some form of relief to the guardian that the actual forum of the Speaker was not as opulently festooned as the rest of the tower's geometries. While still outlandishly extravagant, it could be considered tame by comparison. Where the man who confided with the Traveler once issued sermons to soothe the populace of a struggling empire, now stood proudly three individuals, each unique in their distinction from the other.

To the left, somewhat frail and infirm, stood a creature fairly reptilian in appearance, robed in an guise of blue and gold that partially concealed its features, but not the large black eyes that studied their approach with great interest.

At the center was a figure startlingly humanlike amidst the three species, asari as he had come to recognize from the codex he now possessed. The female, as all her race was, held herself proudly, her stance and eyes unified in their steadfast assuredness. Possessing no form of headwear like the first, her features were clear to his eyes, bright white markings all across her visage in a manner that emulated the awoken's desire to stand apart.

The final councilor, a large, stalwart turian male with a hard countenance and sharp mandibles, stood stiffly in military fashion, echoing all the traits of a man used to war. It would not surprise Uther if he had been a general of great renown and capability before he ascended to the realm of politicking.

From the warrior of light's brief examination of the three that presided over the galaxy as a whole, he could not tell if he was impressed, or saddened. They were not evil, he could see that much just from his senses alone. Yet neither were they entirely competent, here were the rulers of a society that had blundered in their power and abused that which had been left for them, availing themselves with the supremacy of humanity's ashes, but not with the ethical capacity to utilize it the way it had been intended.

The uplift and ensuing castration of the krogan, the very sustained existence of the batarian hegemony, the military solecism that was the attack on Shanxi, all echoed a theme of incompetence and a dependency on their personal emotions that did not befit people of such elevated positions. They had erred, and they had done so mightily. Entire worlds had suffered at their misguided discretion.

Uther sat in silence as his companions stepped forwards at the beckoning of the salarian councilor, his hesitation cemented in the realization that they would in all possibility never be like the Speaker, a man he had regarded as one of the few he ever truly respected more than life itself. At this discovery, Uther found that he did not possess as much a desire to speak with them as he once did. Some part of him, a vastly large portion, preferred to simply walk away, to not involve himself in a society that so poorly reflected the virtues of his race.

Nonetheless he curbed such selfish craving. Even had he wished to vanish, he could not in good conscious allow himself to make the same mistake as he had eons ago. Felwinter had been of noble enough intent to remind him that one did not pick and choose when to follow their sense of duty, and Saladin had echoed a similar impression when he restructured the institution of the Iron Lords. They might not be deserving of his assistance, but that did not mean he would not help them.

Releasing a heavy sigh that echoed quietly in the confines of his great helm, Uther reaffixed the silver wolf's head brooch that fastened the billowing fur lined cloak to his armor's pauldrons, rubbing a gloved thumb across the minted steel of the badge he had received what was countless lifetimes ago. He cursed that he could not remember the names of his fellow Lords, none but Felwinter and Saladin Forge, those two who had enacted the most lasting impacts upon him. The years had not been kind enough to let him keep such treasured memories. Once upon a time Forge had been of ample generosity to constantly remind him of his lost brethren. But with the last of his friends gone, he feared that he would forget far more than names as the centuries pass.

Casting away the bitterness he felt brewing inside him, Uther instead chose to focus on the immediate world he lived in, as the past would not offer him comfort, only sorrow. And as he looked upon the grimacing expressions of Fox and his companions, the guardian was confident in his assumption that the council did not look too kindly on the lukewarm success of their assignment. At this, Uther felt a startling rise of irritation that they were being berated for something far beyond their control. From what he learned, the appearance of the geth could not have been anticipated nor counteracted, and they had no hand in the death of the council specter. Instead of this dressing down, they should be commended on their quick thinking and resourcefulness. Many a guardian at the onset of their duties found themselves stumbling on the way, and it was the duty of their leaders to uplift their spirits in the face of adversity, not cast them down.

A sharp frown hidden underneath his armor's entrapments, the guardian moved forwards from his place at the back of the dais, heavy plasteel boots that had crushed the breastplates of gargantuan cabal colossi and the chitinous armor worn by the vilest of hive knights, echoed loudly in the cavernous amphitheater as he placed a gauntlet on Fox's shoulder.

The current caustic tirade from the asari council petered off weakly as silence descended upon the tower's auditorium with his appearance from the less visible rearwards portion of their party. The cerulean alien appeared uncertain as she shifted her ancient gaze to the armored figure, and her fellow leaders showed a noticeable increase in their attention that not even their many years of scheming could conceal.

The vulpine looked towards him questioningly, receiving his response in the form of a gentle push as he urged the tod to step back from the stand and return to his companions. Now alone, the guardian stepped frontwards to take the alien of lylat's place at the forefront of this new verbal battlefield.

The warrior of light stood proudly underneath the observation of these aliens who were monarchs in all but name. He had stared down Oryx himself in his dreadnought before laying the hive god low in his own house. He had torn the foundations out from beneath a fallen dynasty, striking them so hard that they could never recover. And when the cabal thought they could invade the last city itself and steal their god, he had confronted the Warlord Ghaul and shown him the fate of those that thought to assault the very heart of mankind.

The adversaries of The Traveler had once called him The Lightbringer, for no rival of man could escape the light's retribution, no matter what depths they cowered within.

As still and silent as the desolate machine fields of Venus after the fall of the dark heart, Uther made no inclination that he would be the first to speak. He had no desire to prostrate himself before these figures, would not offer them a respect he had yet to see them earn. They would have to prove themselves through their action if they expected any form of approbation from him.

Several seconds passed before the three heads of the galaxy were able to gather enough willpower to form words of greetings, and it was the asari that was first to try.

"It is my understanding that we have amongst us today a figure of some significant importance, a very member of an ancient race to whom we owe a great deal." The blue scaled, almost elfin creature ducked her head low in deference towards the guardian as if to indicate the one in question. "Perhaps as such, we can momentarily abate ourselves from the quite sorrowful events that transpired upon Eden Prime." Raising a hand to place on her chest, the asari offered a small smile to the guardian. "My name is Councilor Tevos, and to my left and right are Councilors' Valern and Sparatus respectively."

Though she certainly came off as nothing but polite and amiable, he could not help but already feel as if there were some ulterior intentions supplementing this conversation. The councilors would have had many hours to discuss amongst each other on how to handle his presence and what he might affect merely with his existence. He had faced more politicians in his centuries of existence then he would have liked, and all of his learned instincts were warning him that if he did not conduct himself carefully, he might find himself bound to laws and guidelines, and he would not see himself shackled to any force but that of the light.

"What might we be able to call you, forerunner?" The salarian inquired. His expression well-schooled but unable to completely withhold the ferocious interest so commonly associated with his species.

Checking the omni-tool melded with the armored bracer on his right forearm, to ensure that its translation software was functional, the guardian felt a strange reluctance at even offering his title, as if they could somehow entrap him with that alone. Setting a somewhat strained aspect of reception upon his face, the guardian removed his helm, cradling the heavy casing of light forged steel in the crook of his arm as he offered his greetings. Though his visage was alien, the councilors did well to conceal any of their surprise upon seeing it.

" _In the days of Iron, I was once called Uther. You may look upon that title for referral."_

"It is an honor to meet you then, Uther." The asari intoned as her two companions inclined their heads respectively. "And allow us to be the first to publically welcome you to the modern galaxy. There is much that we could learn from you, of your people and the wondrous technology they left behind."

A great effort was made to not scoff at the poorly hidden interest disguised behind their pleasant mannerisms. The guardian was confident that they cared more for the machinery of man than their history. _"I think that you will find to your disappointment that I am not well-learned in the method of our machinery. As you might infer from my appearance, I was no scientist. I am but a simple warrior, more concerned with the field of battle than that of technology."_

Uther found some amusement in the barely efficacious attempt by the turian councilor to conceal his discontent. _"That as it may be, I'm certain I can perhaps recall enough to entertain your historians."_

"Yes of course, the priestesses on Thessia and Cerinia would be very eager to be given the opportunity." Tevos answered diplomatically as she flashed a look of restraint to the turian so swiftly that if not for the guardian's extensive experience in the subtler realms of politics he might not have caught it."However I am afraid I must inquire on a topic I am certain you have been probed upon many times already."

For her favor, Councilor Tevos did appear genuinely curious and contrite for pushing on the subject he had already known would be voiced. Uther allowed himself a rare handful of seconds to ponder on her inquiry, having been wondering at that as well since he had been of enough presence of mind to debate on his choices, which were not in any form of abundance.

As he saw it, there were two options.

He could utilize the prominence of his arrival to further establish himself in this new world order, working slowly to integrate himself into the modern governments of this galaxy in preparation for the possible return of the darkness. While the most logical option, he was not enthused by the idea. The guardian had never been one for the slow and passive route. He was a warrior of action, a sunbreaker, he who had been the vanguard for the push on Oryx's Dreadnaught, despite the concerns of Zavala on the tactical improbability of success.

His second option was perhaps more palatable, but also far more reckless. Yet, given that he had no claim to this iteration, and he had every desire to pay back those who had harmed innocents merely because of his existence, it was really the only option to take. He could later worry about such unimportant things as recognition and the interest of an entire galaxy, especially as none of that had been of any importance to him long before. Uther cared little for fame, and even less for anything but his sacred duty. If these people truly desired to learn more of humanity, they would do so through action. His race had never been one for the inane, not since the collapse. Theirs was a race fully geared for survival at any cost. And he would not play a passive role in this time or any other.

" _I believe I will track down the hostile forces that sacked Eden Prime. Those people suffered for having uncovered my stasis pod, and I would see justice metered out. As I have no desire to go against the wishes of this galaxy's governing body unnecessarily, I would ask for this council's sanctification."_ To all but the councilors themselves, it seemed like a request, but in the eyes of an experienced statesman, it was an ultimatum, one that they would be foolish to deny.

If they did not condone his mission, they would be publically refuting him, one of a race that had at one time ruled the entire known galaxy. This once he was willing to use his unique position to try and leverage some influence out of the council, for despite his abilities if he did not possess their consent his efforts would be severely hindered.

A faint curl of the asari's purple lips showed but a brief inclination of displeasure before it shifted into a knowing smile, as if to acknowledge his play. "I believe my fellow councilors and I will agree that what you ask is well within our right to condone. We would expect nothing less from one belonging to our magnanimous predecessors. If you wish to have those terrorists answer for their crimes, we will offer our full support in your endeavors."

"The Citadel's resources are at your disposal, Forerunner." Councilor Sparatus declared with what was perhaps a startling sincerity in his tone as he offered the human guardian an earnest curl of mandibles, what the Codex has informed Uther, was a gesture of honorable respect amongst the turian people. "I have no stomach for acts of the craven. If you have need of any additional assistance; know the Hierarchy stands with you."

Uther was not entirely certain if he was impressed. While his words seemed genuine, it was completely possible that Sparatus simply wished to secure favor with him that could be exploited at a later date.

This was why he hated politics.

It was nigh impossible to judge the true sincerity of a politician, one was more likely to find an honest fallen dreg amidst the house of wolves, than an honest man of state. In some ways, Uther thought with an inwardly aimed chuckle, the world of statecraft was not all that dissimilar from the pitch of battle, and remained largely unchanged in this future. A line must be drawn and defended, though such a battle was fought within the confines of a mind rather than an open field. He would have to be warry of any support he might request in his hunt, lest it crash into his unguarded flank.

The guardian withdrew internally for next few hours, mostly to escape the banal affair, consisting of numerous questions posed by the three councilors, and his ambiguous responses. It had been fairly childish of him to assume that the meeting with the Council would be brief. But he was amused at how easily they forgot the events of Eden Prime in favor of their invasive inquiries. For those who had so fervently scolded Fox and his companions, they had remarkably little care for the loss of lives, a realization that Uther did his best to not become irritated over.

Was the suffering of thousands a topic so easily forgotten? Was the morality of this present galaxy so warped that such a blatant and horrific attack on civilians was something that could be brushed aside for the next biggest piece of news?

At one point the salarian councilor even had the gall to inquire as to whether he planned for any public appearances, and if he would like to speak favorably on behalf of the union. It was that moment that Uther decided he had about enough of this conversation as he could stomach and politely broached his desire to leave, feigning some such other that he needed some time to dwell on his circumstances. The Councils reluctance was tangible, but they had enough courtesy and presence of mind to know when to ease off. Sparatus said something about offering him living accommodations in the presidium, but the guardian by then had ceased to care. He would rather roam the streets then let the Council acquire any leverage on him.

Offering a vague response, Uther had to force himself to endure the extra thirty minutes of inane pleasantries before he finally was able to extract himself from the dais itself, and only after he offered his assurance that he would return to speak with them at a later date.

Using a particular skill taught to him by an exo hunter that had accompanied him on a few nightfall strikes, he was able to slip through the bulk of the plaza unnoticed by the vast majority, finding solace at a small resting area sequestered on a low elevated platform overlooking what had once been the trade district, but now existed underneath a new moniker, The Zakera Wards.

The human guardian felt the temptation to remove the trappings of his helmet and enjoy the cool and melancholically familiar breeze, but was even less tempted to deal with any curious passerby. Instead the warrior contented himself with a sigh as he popped open the casing on his armor's left bracer.

With the absence of Ghost, he had to see to his own technological needs. Thankfully, his suit's simple intelligence system was capable of preforming some of the more basic functions his artificial companion was capable of. The nano forge could fabricate ammunition for his weapons from his existing reserves of glimmer and any alloys and minerals he would come across. He had learned his lesson after Gaul captured the Traveler, rendering his powers and Ghost's abilities nullified. His light forged plate was packed with countless redundancies in its software as well as a hundred small upgrades to enhance its survivability in the field.

Yet even with all of those upgrades, without Ghost… if he died.

There was no coming back.

Ghost had been more than his means of resurrection. He had been his greatest friend, someone that had quite literally been there with him every moment of every second of every day. Ghost had with him when he first awoke, when he took down the black garden… when he had defeated Oryx.

Without Ghost…

He was alone.

Footsteps intruded upon his musing and Uther closed the clasp on his bracer, concealing the tactical display and the various images of past exploits he had been perusing to address his visitor.

" _Councilor Daala, I greet you warmly, if curiously. I was just taking a few quite moments to enjoy the scenery. It has… been a long time since I last was able to reflect upon the beatific sceneries of Elysium."_

The slender cheetah gracefully traversed the short steps down to the extended viewing area, the spotted feline imitating his leaned stance against the rails as she transfixed him with her gaze. She had kind eyes, the councilor. That was in fact the first thing he truly noticed about her, soft blue, like the waters of Titan at the peak of its splendor during the second golden age.

"Elysium? Is that what this place was called?" Her voice, low and curious, was pleasant to his ears after hours of listening to the forced civility of politicians. In honesty he pitied the woman. She did not deserve to be entangled within the intricate secrecies and backroom covenants of such persons. He could tell, just by looking at her, that she was too good for them, for this place. The tower of the travel, while it may still stand, was a darker place then it had once been.

Yet perhaps, if people like her still roamed its halls, then it was not forever gone.

" _Such was its name, long ago. So called for the Elysian Fields, a heavenly afterlife in ancient human culture, it was to be our brightest star amidst the darkest corners of the galaxy."_ Uther tried, but could not entirely subdue the hint of sorrow inside him at memories past. So much had been lost that he wondered… could any of it be saved?

"Elysium…" The spotted feline let the unfamiliar word roll of her tongue, her gaze taking in the imposing backdrop of the space station from their unique location. The artificial sun had taken its grand descent in the hours they had spent in the conference, and now a mellow orange hue ran across the virtual skyline, the forest of iron towers glittering like jewels from the reflection of countless windows as they hung from the petals of the great station like a budding flower. "A beautiful name." Her voice rose up once more after many minutes of silence.

" _A beautiful name for a beautiful place,"_ he agreed with a smile, if only for a moment at finding a likeminded soul. _"It was a place unlike any other, and now I suppose… it still is."_ Feeling as if any more words would tarnish this moment of serenity, Uther slipped into comfortable silence.

Ghost was gone, his one last, true friend. His race had died, their history merely legends for a multitude of alien species. He was more alone than he had been in thousands of years, he was without purpose, without vision, and nearly… without hope. Nevertheless, the light burned brightly within him, he required neither food nor rest, and he remained at the height of his power. Perhaps there was one drive left to him. He would uncover the true fate of humanity, he would absolve himself to pursue the whereabouts of the Traveler, and he would destroy any remnant of the darkness that he unveiled in his quest.

Whatever fate threw against him, there was one truth he would forever uphold. He was a guardian, a servant to the people and a protector of the innocent. And he would not falter in his duty, for it was all he had left.

"If I may ask, what are your plans now?"

Uther turned away from the artificially formed horizon, studying the inquisitive visage of the female councilor and her animalian ears that perked up so keenly. _"I will do as I told the Council. Your colony of Eden Prime was attacked because you found me. My mere existence has brought a great tragedy upon your race. I_ _ **will**_ _see this wrong righted. I will hunt the geth. I will find those responsible, and I will exact retribution."_

As he spoke, Uther felt a heat in his abdomen that he had not felt in millennia, not since he watched the black garden die. The flames of resolution had once again been reignited. He had an immediate aim, something that could sustain him for at least a little while.

"And how will you do that?" The exotic feline questioned, a reluctant frown pursing her lips. "I would never wish to insult your capabilities, and I find your intentions nothing less than admirable, Uther. But you have only just arrived in our galaxy, one that you have been absent from for a long, long time. It is not the same place you left behind, I am certain of that. There are threats and dangers beyond your current knowledge, things that no amount of study from the galactic codex could prepare you for." The cheetah paused, the fur on her muzzle squirming as she adopted a bashful air as she tucked her arms underneath her breasts and held herself closely, her eyes downcast with embarrassment and regret in equal apparency.

"I ask for your forgiveness, Uther. I overstep my boundaries." She apologized, her entire body spurred into action as she moved to step away from him with a near tangible aura of mortification.

"You seem like a kind and just person, and I would hate to see this galaxy chew you up and spit you out." She mumbled out as she took another step backwards.

Before she could further retreat into herself, the guardian strode forward to meet her withdrawal, pitching an arm forward to lay a comforting hand upon her shoulder. Casting away his misgivings, the man swiftly removed his helmet so that she could see in full the true belief he would impart upon his words _. "Do not ask for forgiveness where none is needed, Miss Daala."_ He intoned; dropping her title in favor of a more familiar tone that he hoped would offer her ease of mind.

" _Your concern, while unexpected, is entirely appreciated. You are right. This is not the galaxy I had once known, and there are bound to be many things I will not understand. But I would wish that you understand something as well. In my time before, I was known as a warrior servant, vassaled to my divinity_ _and_ _tasked with the sole purpose of defending civilization. That is all I am, all I know how to be. For me, there is no other option."_

He smiled, both in gratitude that she would be so concerned, and in amusement that she was far more congenial than any politician he had ever met before. _"I will not be led astray so easily."_ Uther assured her with a low chuckle as he released his grip upon her and moved away to return the cheetah's personal privacy to her.

" _This has been a most enlightening and wonderful conversation, Councilor, but I must now be on my way. There is darkness in this galaxy that must be put to light."_ Withdrawing from her immediate presence with a lithely twist of his heels, the guardian slickly donned his helm and set out on a random trajectory, intending for fate to once more work its whims, though perhaps this time more in his favor.

"Please… wait a moment!"

The warrior of light paused at the steps, turning back to the slim cheetah that hastily crossed the distance between them.

" _Yes, Councilor?"_ He inquired with a curious raise of his brow that went entirely unnoticed, concealed as it was. Her guise seemed uncertain, but her soul burned bright. And this peaked Uther's interest.

"How exactly will you do all that you have promised?" She asked with a troubled tilt of her head, feline ears splayed back in mild concern. "From Peppy's report, you have nothing but what you carry with you now."

Uther chortled softly, great warmth resonating within him as he considered her question.

" _Councilor, that is all I have ever needed. The light will be my guide in this journey, and my equipment will help me enforce its will. Neither has yet to fail me."_

"All the same, I believe I may be able to help." The cheetah smiled nervously, unable to do otherwise upon hearing that melodious laugh, what was lovelier than even the greatest of asari vocalists, burdened as it was by some extraordinary tenor beyond description. "If you would, please come see me sometime in the next few days."

The guardian nodded his consent to her request. _"It shall be so… till we next cross paths, Councilor."_ Taking flight up the steps, Councilor Daala watched as the large armored figure of the peculiar male as he seemed to vanish before her eyes, his disappearance finally silencing the fickle fluttering in her heart.

* * *

 _And BAM, didn't think this would be coming out so soon did ya! Well look who had a sudden and unreasonable desire to get this story rolling again... this guy! Hope you guys will like this chapter, a little short, but hopefully of good quality. As always reviews are appreciated and have a fantastic day!_

 _Keep the faith!_


End file.
